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COWARDICE'COURT 


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COWARDICE 
COURT 


BY 


W1TH-ILLVSTRATIONS-BY 

HARRISON-FISHER 

AND-DECORATIONS-BY 

THEODORE-B-HAPGGOD 

LIBRARV 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
DAVIS 


NEW  YORK  A19O6 


DO 


1®, 


M 


Copyright,  1906 
BY  DODD,  MEAD,  AND  COMPANY 


THE    UNIVERSITY    PRESS,    CAMBRIDGE,    U.  S.  A 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

I.  IN  WHICH  A  YOUNG   MAN  TRESPASSES 

II.  IN  WHICH  A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES 

III.  IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES   .      .     . 

IV.  IN  WHICH  THE  TRUTH  TRESPASSES 

V.  IN  WHICH  DAN   CUPID  TRESPASSES  .      . 

VI.  IN  WHICH  A   GHOST  TRESPASSES      .      . 

VII.  IN  WHICH  THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES 


ILLUSTRATIONS , 


Frontispiece 


Facing  page 


'  So  you  are  putting  me  off  your  place  ?     Oh, 

how  lovely !'  ' '      [Page  34] 30 

She  was  her  own  mistress  and  privileged  to  ride 


as  often  as  she  pleased  "      [Page  42]    . 


68 


:Poor  old  Bonaparte  ! '  was  all  he  said  in  reply  "        96 

[Page  6 1] 

:  Good  heaven,   Randolph,  go  to  him  !     He  is 

hurt'"      [Page  135] 122 


H 


COWARDICE  COURT 


CHAPTER    I 

IN    WHICH    A    YOUNG    MAN    TRESPASSES 

llE'S  just  an  infernal  dude,  your  lord 
ship,  and  I  '11  throw  him  in  the  river  if  he 
says  a  word  too  much/' 

"  He  has  already  said  too  much,  Tomp- 
kins,  confound  him,  don't  you  know." 

"Then  I  'm  to  throw  him  in  whether  he 
says  anything  or  not,  sir  ?  " 

"  Have  you  seen  him  ?  " 

"  No,  your  lordship,  but  James  has. 
James  says  he  wears  a  red  coat  and  — " 

"  Never  mind,  Tompkins.  He  has  no 
right  to  fish  on  this  side  of  that  log.  The 
insufferable  ass  may  own  the  land  on  the 
opposite  side,  but,  confound  his  imperti 
nence,  I  own  it  on  this  side." 


H. 


2  COWARDICE  COURT 

This  concluding  assertion  of  the  usually 
placid  but  now  irate  Lord  Bazelhurst  was  not 
quite  as  momentous  as  it  sounded.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  the  title  to  the  land  was  vested 
entirely  in  his  young  American  wife  ;  his  sole 
possession,  according  to  report,  being  a  title 
much  less  substantial  but  a  great  deal  more 
picturesque  than  the  large,  much-handled 
piece  of  paper  down  in  the  safety  deposit  vault 
—  lying  close  and  crumpled  among  a  million 
sordid,  homely  little  slips  called  coupons. 

It  requires  no  great  stretch  of  imagination 
to  understand  that  Lord  Bazelhurst  had  an 
undesirable  neighbour.  That  neighbour  was 
young  Mr.  Shaw — Randolph  Shaw,  heir  to 
the  Randolph  fortune.  It  may  be  fair  to 
state  that  Mr.  Shaw  also  considered  himself 
to  be  possessed  of  an  odious  neighbour.  In 
other  words,  although  neither  had  seen  the 
other,  there  was  a  feud  between  the  owners 
of  the  two  estates  that  had  all  the  earmarks 
of  an  ancient  romance. 

Lady  Bazelhurst  was  the  daughter  of  a 
New  York  millionaire  ;  she  was  young,  beau 
tiful,  and  arrogant.  Nature  gave  her  youth 
and  beauty  ;  marriage  gave  her  the  remaining 
quality.  Was  she  not  Lady  Bazelhurst  ? 
What  odds  if  Lord  Bazelhurst  happened  to 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES      3 

be  a  middle-aged,  addle-pated  ass  ?  So  much 
the  better.  Bazelhurst  castle  and  the  Bazel- 
hurst  estates  (heavily  encumbered  before  her 
father  came  to  the  rescue)  were  among  the 
oldest  and  most  coveted  in  the  English 
market.  Her  mother  noted,  with  unctu 
ous  joy,  that  the  present  Lady  Bazelhurst 
in  babyhood  had  extreme  difficulty  in  mas 
tering  the  eighth  letter  of  the  alphabet, 
certainly  a  most  flattering  sign  of  natal 
superiority,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that 
her  father  was  plain  old  John  Banks  (de 
ceased),  formerly  of  Jersey  City,  more  latterly 
of  Wall  street  and  St.  Thomas's. 

Bazelhurst  was  a  great  catch,  but  Banks 
was  a  good  name  to  conjure  with,  so  he 
capitulated  with  a  willingness  that  savoured 
somewhat  of  suspended  animation  (so  fearful 
was  he  that  he  might  do  something  to  disturb 
the  dream  before  it  came  true).  That  was 
two  years  ago.  With  exquisite  irony,  Lady 
Bazelhurst  decided  to  have  a  country-place 
in  America.  Her  agents  discovered  a  glori 
ous  section  of  woodland  in  the  Adirondacks, 
teeming  with  trout  streams,  game  haunts, 
unparalleled  scenery  ;  her  ladyship  instructed 
them  to  buy  without  delay.  It  was  just  here 
that  young  Mr.  Shaw  came  into  prominence. 


4  COWARDICE  COURT 

His  grandfather  had  left  him  a  fortune 
and  he  was  looking  about  for  ways  in  which 
to  spend  a  portion  of  it.  College,  travel, 
and  society  having  palled  on  him,  he  hied 
himself  into  the  big  hills  west  of  Lake  Cham- 
plain,  searching  for  beauty,  solitude,  and  life 
as  he  imagined  it  should  be  lived.  He  found 
and  bought  five  hundred  acres  of  the  most 
beautiful  bit  of  wilderness  in  the  mountains. 

The  same  streams  coursed  through  his 
hills  and  dales  that  ran  through  those  of  Lady 
Bazelhurst,  the  only  distinction  being  that 
his  portion  was  the  more  desirable.  When 
her  ladyship's  agents  came  leisurely  up  to 
close  their  deal,  they  discovered  that  Mr. 
Shaw  had  snatched  up  this  choice  five  hun 
dred  acres  of  the  original  tract  intended 
for  their  client.  At  least  one  thousand 
acres  were  left  for  the  young  lady,  but  she 
was  petulant  enough  to  covet  all  of  it. 

Overtures  were  made  to  Mr.  Shaw,  but 
he  would  not  sell.  He  was  preparing  to 
erect  a  handsome  country-place,  and  he  did 
not  want  to  alter  his  plans.  Courteously  at 
first,  then  somewhat  scathingly  he  declined 
to  discuss  the  proposition  with  her  agents. 
After  two  months  of  pressure  of  the  most 
tiresome  persistency,  he  lost  his  temper  and 


Hi 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES      5 

sent  a  message  to  his  inquisitors  that  sud 
denly  terminated  all  negotiations.  After 
wards,  when  he  learned  that  their  client  was  a 
lady,  he  wrote  a  conditional  note  of  apology, 
but,  if  he  expected  a  response,  he  was  disap 
pointed.  A  year  went  by,  and  now,  with  the 
beginning  of  this  narrative,  two  newly  com 
pleted  country  homes  glowered  at  each  other 
from  separate  hillsides,  one  envious  and 
spiteful,  the  other  defiant  and  a  bit  satirical. 
Bazelhurst  Villa  looks  across  the  valley 
and  sees  Shaw's  Cottage  commanding  the 
most  beautiful  view  in  the  hills ;  the  very 
eaves  of  her  ladyship's  house  seem  to  have 
wrinkled  into  a  constant  scowl  of  annoyance. 
Shaw's  long,  low  cottage  seems  to  smile  back 
with  tantalizing  security,  serene  in  its  more 
lofty  altitude,  in  its  more  gorgeous  raiment 
of  nature.  The  brooks  laugh  with  the  glit 
ter  of  trout,  the  trees  chuckle  with  the  flight 
of  birds,  the  hillsides  frolic  in  their  abun 
dance  of  game,  but  the  acres  are  growling  like 
dogs  of  war.  <c  Love  thy  neighbour  as  thy 
self"  is  not  printed  on  the  boards  that  line 
the  borders  of  the  two  estates.  In  bold 
black  letters  the  sign-boards  laconically  say : 
"  No  trespassing  on  these  grounds.  Keep 
off!" 


COWARDICE   COURT 

"  Yes,  I  fancy  you  'd  better  put  him  off 
the  place  if  he  comes  down  here  again  to 
fish,  Tompkins,"  said  his  lordship,  in  con 
clusion.  Then  he  touched  whip  to  his  horse 
and  bobbed  off  through  the  shady  lane  in  a 
most  painfully  upright  fashion,  his  thin  legs 
sticking  straight  out,  his  breath  coming  in 
agonized  little  jerks  with  each  succeeding 
return  of  his  person  to  the  saddle. 

"  By  Jove,  Evelyn,  it 's  most  annoying 
about  that  confounded  Shaw  chap,"  he  re 
marked  to  his  wife  as  he  mounted  the  broad 
steps  leading  to  the  gallery  half  an  hour 
later,  walking  with  the  primness  which  sug 
gests  pain.  Lady  Bazelhurst  looked  up 
from  her  book,  her  fine  aristocratic  young 
face  clouding  with  ready  belligerence. 

"  What  has  he  done,  Cecil  dear  ? " 

"  Been  fishing  on  our  property  again, 
that's  all.  Tompkins  says  he  laughed  at 
him  when  he  told  him  to  get  off.  I  say,  do 
you  know,  I  think  I  '11  have  to  adopt  rough 
methods  with  that  chap.  Hang  it  all,  what 
right  has  he  to  catch  our  fish  ? " 

cc  Oh,  how  I  hate  that  man  !  "  exclaimed 
her  ladyship  petulantly. 

"  But  I  Ve  given  Tompkins  final  instruc 
tions." 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES      7 

"  And  what  are  they  ?  " 

"  To  throw  him  in  the  river  next  time." 

"  Oh,  if  he  only  could !  "  rapturously. 

"  Could?  My  dear,  Tompkins  is  an 
American.  He  can  handle  these  chaps  in 
their  own  way.  At  any  rate,  I  told  Tomp 
kins  if  his  nerve  failed  him  at  the  last  minute 
to  come  and  notify  me.  /'//  attend  to  this 
confounded  popinjay  !  " 

"  Good  for  you,  Cecil !  "  called  out  another 
young  woman  from  the  broad  hammock  in 
which  she  had  been  dawdling  with  half-alert 
ears  through  the  foregoing  conversation. 
"  Spoken  like  a  true  Briton.  What  is  this 
popinjay  like  ?  " 

"Hullo,  sister.  Hang  it  all,  what's  he 
like?  He's  like  an  ass,  that's  all.  I've 
never  seen  him,  but  if  I  'm  ever  called  upon 
to  —  but  you  don't  care  to  listen  to  details. 
You  remember  the  big  log  that  lies  out  in 
the  river  up  at  the  bend?  Well,  it  marks 
the  property  line.  One  half  of  its  stump 
belongs  to  the  Shaw  man,  the  other  half  to 
m —  to  us,  Evelyn.  He  shan't  fish  below 
that  log  —  no,  sir!"  His  lordship  glared 
fiercely  through  his  monocle  in  the  direction 
of  the  far-away  log,  his  watery  blue  eyes 
blinking  as  malevolently  as  possible,  his 


C> 


H 


8  COWARDICE  COURT 

long,  aristocratic  nose  wrinkling  at  its  base 
in  fine  disdain.  His  five  feet  four  of  stature 
quivered  with  illy-subdued  emotion,  but 
whether  it  was  rage  or  the  sudden  recollec 
tion  of  the  dog-trot  through  the  woods,  it  is 
beyond  me  to  suggest. 

"  But  suppose  our  fish  venture  into  his 
waters,  Cecil ;  what  then  ?  Is  n't  that  tres 
pass  ?  "  demanded  the  Honourable  Penelope 
Drake,  youngest  and  most  cherished  sister 
of  his  lordship. 

"  Now,  don't  be  silly,  Pen,"  cried  her 
sister-in-law.  "  Of  course  we  can't  regulate 
the  fish." 

"  But  I  daresay  his  fish  will  come  below 
the  log,  so  what 's  the  odds  ?  "  said  his  lord 
ship  quickly.  "A  trout's  a  lawless  brute 
at  best." 

"Is  he  big?"  asked  the  Honourable 
Penelope  lazily. 

"  They  vary,  my  dear  girl." 

"  I  mean  Mr.  Shaw." 

"Oh,  I  thought  you  meant  the  —  but  I 
don't  know.  What  difference  does  that 
make  ?  Big  or  little,  he  has  to  stay  off  my 
grounds."  Was  it  a  look  of  pride  that  his 
tall  young  wife  bestowed  upon  him  as  he 
drew  himself  proudly  erect  or  was  it  akin  to 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES 

pity  ?  At  any  rate,  her  gay  young  Ameri 
can  head  was  inches  above  his  own  when 
she  arose  and  suggested  that  they  go  inside 
and  prepare  for  the  housing  of  the  guests  who 
were  to  come  over  from  the  evening  train. 

"  The  drag  has  gone  over  to  the  station, 
Cecil,  and  it  should  be  here  by  seven 
o'clock." 

"  Confound  his  impudence,  I  '11  show  him," 
grumbled  his  lordship  as  he  followed  her, 
stiff-legged,  toward  the  door. 

"What's  up,  Cecil,  with  your  legs?" 
called  his  sister.  "  Are  you  getting  old  ?  " 
This  suggestion  always  irritated  him. 

"  Old  ?  Silly  question.  You  know  how 
old  I  am.  No  ;  it 's  that  beastly  American 
horse.  Evelyn,  I  told  you  they  have  no 
decent  horses  in  this  beastly  country.  They 
jiggle  the  life  out  of  one  —  "  but  he  was 
obliged  to  unbend  himself  perceptibly  in 
order  to  keep  pace  with  her  as  she  hurried 
through  the  door. 

The  Honourable  Penelope  allowed  her 
indolent  gaze  to  follow  them.  A  perplexed 
pucker  finally  developed  on  her  fair  brow  and 
her  thought  was  almost  expressed  aloud: 
"  By  Jove,  I  wonder  if  she  really  loves  him." 
Penelope  was  very  pretty  and  very  bright. 


IO 


COWARDICE  COURT 


She  was  visiting  America  for  the  first  time 
and  she  was  learning  rapidly.  "  Cecil 's  a 
good  sort,  you  know,  even — •"  but  she  was 
loyal  enough  to  send  her  thoughts  into  other 
channels. 

Nightfall  brought  half  a  dozen  guests  to 
Bazelhurst  Villa.  They  were  fashionable 
to  the  point  where  ennui  is  the  chief  char 
acteristic,  and  they  came  only  for  bridge  and 
sleep.  There  was  a  duke  among  them  and 
also  a  French  count,  besides  the  bored  New 
Yorkers ;  they  wanted  brandy  and  soda  as 
soon  as  they  got  into  the  house,  and  they 
went  to  bed  early  because  it  was  so  much 
easier  to  sleep  lying  down  than  sitting  up. 

All  were  up  by  noon  the  next  day,  more 
bored  than  ever,  fondly  praying  that  nothing 
might  happen  before  bedtime.  The  duke 
was  making  desultory  love  to  Mrs.  De  Pey 
ton  and  Mrs.  De  Peyton  was  leading  him 
aimlessly  toward  the  shadier  and  more  se 
cluded  nooks  in  the  park  surrounding  the 
Villa.  Penelope,  fresh  and  full  of  the  pur 
pose  of  life,  was  off  alone  for  a  long  stroll. 
By  this  means  she  avoided  the  attentions  of 
the  duke,  who  wanted  to  marry  her;  those  of 
the  count  who  also  said  he  wanted  to  marry 
her  but  could  n't  because  his  wife  would  not 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES    n 

consent;  those  of  one  New  Yorker,  who 
liked  her  because  she  was  English ;  and 
the  pallid  chatter  of  the  women  who  bored 
her  with  their  conjugal  cynicisms. 

"  What  the  deuce  is  this  coming  down  the 
road?"  queried  the  duke,  returning  from 
the  secluded  nook  at  luncheon  time. 

"  Some  one  has  been  hurt,"  exclaimed  his 
companion.  Others  were  looking  down  the 
leafy  road  from  the  gallery. 

"  By  Jove,  it 's  Penelope,  don't  you  know," 
ejaculated  the  duke,  dropping  his  monocle 
and  blinking  his  eye  as  if  to  rest  it  for  the 
time  being. 

"  But  she  's  not  hurt.  She  's  helping  to 
support  one  of  those  men." 

"  Hey ! "  shouted  his   lordship  from  the 
gallery,  as  Penelope  and  two  dilapidated  male 
companions  abruptly  started  to  cut  across  the 
park  in  the  direction  of  the  stables.    "  What 's 
up?"     Penelope  waved  her  hand  aimlessly,  «i/v^ 
but  did  not  change  her  course.    Whereupon  nl\/j 
the  entire  house  party  sallied  forth  in  more  or 
less  trepidation  to  intercept  the  strange  party.  J|      HI  C^\ 

"  Who  are  these  men  ?  "  demanded  Lady   VU       \\\\/ 
Bazelhurst,   as    they   came   up   to   the   fast- 
breathing  young  Englishwoman. 

"  Don't  bother  me,  please.     We  must  get 


12 


COWARDICE  COURT 


him  to  bed  at  once.  He'll  have  pneu 
monia,"  replied  Penelope. 

Both  men  were  dripping  wet  and  the  one 
in  the  middle  limped  painfully,  probably 
because  both  eyes  were  swollen  tight  and 
his  nose  was  bleeding.  Penelope's  face  was 
beaming  with  excitement  and  interest. 

"  Who  are  you  ?  "  demanded  his  lordship, 
planting  himself  in  front  of  the  shivering 
twain. 

"  Tompkins,"  murmured  the  blind  one 
feebly,  tears  starting  from  the  blue  slits  and 
rolling  down  his  cheeks. 

"James,  sir,"  answered  the  other,  touch 
ing  his  damp  forelock. 

"  Are  they  drunk  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  De  Pey 
ton,  with  fresh  enthusiasm. 

"  No,  they  are  not,  poor  fellows,"  cried 
Penelope.  "  They  have  taken  nothing  but 
water." 

"  By  Jove,  deuced  clever  that,"  drawled 
the  duke.  "  Eh  ?  "  to  the  New  Yorker. 

"  Deuced,"  from  the  Knickerbocker. 

"Well,  well,  what's  it  all  about?"  de 
manded  Bazelhurst. 

"  Mr.  Shaw,  sir,"  said  James. 

"  Good  Lord,  could  n't  you  rescue  him  ?  " 
in  horror. 


Hi 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES    13 

"  He  rescued  us,  sir/*  mumbled  Tomp- 
kins. 

"You  mean—" 

"  He  throwed  us  in  and  then  had  to  jump 
in  and  pull  us  out,  sir.  Beggin'  your  par 
don,  sir,  but  damn  him  !  " 

"  And  you  did  n't  throw  him  in,  after  all  ? 
By  Jove,  extraordinary  !  " 

"  Do  you  mean  to  tell  us  that  he  threw 
you  great  hulking  creatures  into  the  river  ? 
Single-handed  ? "  cried  Lady  Bazelhurst, 
aghast. 

"  He  did,  Evelyn,"  inserted  Penelope. 
"  I  met  them  coming  home,  and  poor  Tomp- 
kins  was  out  of  his  senses.  I  don't  know 
how  it  happened,  but  —  " 

"  It  was  this  way,  your  ladyship,"  put  in 
James,  the  groom.  "  Tompkins  and  me 
could  see  him  from  the  point  there,  sir, 
afishin'  below  the  log.  So  we  says  to  each 
other  c  Come  on,'  and  up  we  went  to  where 
he  was  afishin'.  Tompkins,  bein'  the  game 
warden,  says  he  to  him  c  Hi  there  ! '  He  was 
plainly  on  our  property,  sir,  afishin'  from  a 
boat  for  bass,  sir.  c  Hello,  boys,'  says  he 
back  to  us.  c  Get  oflF  our  land,'  says  Tomp 
kins.  f  I  am,v  says  he ;  c  it 's  water  out 
here  where  I  am.'  Then  —  " 


0 


14  COWARDICE  COURT 

"You're   wrong,"   broke   in    Tompkins. 
"He    said   c  it 's    wet    out    here    where    I 


am. 


"  You  're  right.  It  was  wet.  Then  Tomp 
kins  called  him  a  vile  name,  your  lordship 
—  shall  I  repeat  it,  sir  ? " 

"  No,  no  !  "  cried  four  feminine  voices. 

"  Yes,  do,"  muttered  the  duke. 

"  He  did  n't  wait  after  that,  sir.  He 
rowed  to  shore  in  a  flash  and  landed  on  our 
land.  'What  do  you  mean  by  that?'  he 
said,  mad-like.  c  My  orders  is  to  put  you 
off  this  property/  says  Tompkins,  '  or  to 
throw  you  in  the  river.'  c  Who  gave  these 
orders  ? '  asked  Mr.  Shaw.  (  Lord  Bazel- 
hurst,  sir,  damn  you  — '  beg  pardon,  sir;  it 
slipped  out.  'And  who  the  devil  is  Lord 
Bazelthurst  ? '  said  he.  c  Hurst/  said  Tomp 
kins.  c  He  owns  this  ground.  Can't  you 
see  the  mottoes  on  the  trees — No  Tres- 
passin'?'  — but  Mr.  Shaw  said:  c  Well,  why 
don't  you  throw  me  in  the  river?'  He 
kinder  smiled  when  he  said  it.  CI  will/ 
says  Tompkins,  and  made  a  rush  for  him. 
I  don't  just  remember  why  I  started  in  to 
help  Tompkins,  but  I  did.  Somehow,  sir, 
Mr.  Shaw  got  —  " 

"  Don't  call  him  Mr.  Shaw.     Just  Shaw  j 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES    15 

he  's  no  gentleman/'  exploded  Lord  Bazel- 
hurst. 

"  But  he  told  us  both  to  call  him  c  Mister/ 
sir,  as  long  as  we  lived.  I  kinder  got  in  the 
habit  of  it,  your  lordship,  up  there.  That 
is,  that 's  what  he  told  us  after  he  got  through 
with  us.  Well,  anyhow,  he  got  the  start  of 
us  an*  —  there  's  Tompkins'  eyes,  sir,  and 
look  at  my  ear.  Then  he  pitched  us  both 
in  the  river." 

"  Good  Lord  !  "  gasped  the  duke. 

"  Diable  !  "  sputtered  the  count. 

"  Splendid  !  "  cried  Penelope,  her  eyes 
sparkling. 

"  Hang  it  all,  Pen,  don't  interrupt  the 
count/'t  snorted  Bazelhurst,  for  want  of 
something  better  to  say  and  perhaps  hoping 
that  Deveaux  might  say  in  French  what 
could  not  be  uttered  in  English. 

"  Don't  say  it  in  French,  count,"  said 
little  Miss  Folsom.  "It  deserves  English." 

"Go  on,  James,"  sternly,  from  Lady 
Bazelhurst. 

"  Well,  neither  of  us  can  swim,  your 
ladyship,  an*  we'd  'a'  drowned  if  Mr. —  if 
Shaw  had  n't  jumped  in  himself  an'  pulled 
us  out.  As  it  was,  sir,  Tompkins  was  un 
conscious.  We  rolled  him  on  a  log,  sir,  an* 


i6 


COWARDICE   COURT 


<o 


got  a  keg  of  water  out  of  him.  Then  Mr. 
—  er  —  Shaw  told  us  to  go  'ome  and  get  in 
bed,  sir." 

"  He  sent  a  message  to  you,  sir,"  added 
Tompkins,  shivering  mightily. 

"Well,  I  '11  have  one  for  him,  never  fear," 
said  his  lordship,  glancing  about  bravely. 
"  I  won't  permit  any  man  to  assault  my  ser 
vants  and  brutally  maltreat  them.  No,  sir  ! 
He  shall  hear  from  me  —  or  my  attorney." 

"  He  told  us  to  tell  you,  sir,  that  if  he 
ever  caught  anybody  from  this  place  on  his 
land  he  'd  serve  him  worse  than  he  did  us," 
said  Tompkins. 

"He  says,  c  I  don't  want  no  Bazelhursts 
on  my  place/  "  added  James  in  finality. 

"  Go  to  bed,  both  of  you  ! "  roared  his 
lordship. 

"  Very  good,  sir,"  in  unison. 

"  They  can  get  to  bed  without  your  help, 
I  daresay,  Pen,"  added  his  lordship  causti 
cally,  as  she  started  away  with  them.  Penel 
ope  with  a  rare  blush  and  —  well,  one  party 
went  to  luncheon  while  the  other  went  to 
bed. 

"  I  should  like  to  see  this  terrible  Mr. 
Shaw,"  observed  Penelope  at  table.  "  He 's 
a  sort  of  Jack-the-Giant-Killer,  I  fancy." 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES     17 

"  He  is  the  sort  one  has  to  meet  in 
America,"  lamented  her  ladyship. 

"  Oh,  I  say  now,"  expostulated  the  New 
York  young  man,  wryly. 

"  I  don't  mean  in  good  society,"  she  cor 
rected,  with  unconscious  irony. 

"  Oh,"  said  he,  very  much  relieved. 

"  He's  a  demmed  cad,"  said  his  lordship 
conclusively. 

"  Because  he  chucked  your  men  into  the 
river  ?  "  asked  Penelope  sweetly. 

"  She  's  dooced  pretty,  eh  ?  "  whispered  the 
duke  to  Mrs.  De  Peyton  without  taking 
his  eyes  from  his  young  countrywoman's 
face. 

"  Who  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  De  Peyton.  Then 
he  relinquished  his  gaze  and  turned  his  mon 
ocle  blankly  upon  the  American  beside  him. 

"  I  shall  send  him  a  warning  that  he  '11 
have  to  respect,  cad  or  no  cad,"  said  Bazel- 
hurst,  absently  spreading  butter  upon  his 
fingers  instead  of  the  roll. 

"Send him  a  warning  ?  "  asked  his  queenly 
wife.  "Aren't  you  going  to  see  him  per 
sonally  ?  You  can't  trust  the  servants,  it 
seems." 

"My  dear,  I  can't  afford  to  lose  my  tem 
per  and  engage  in  a  row  with  that  bounder, 


i8 


COWARDICE  COURT 


and  there  's  no  end  of  trouble  I  might  get 
into  —  " 

"  I  shall  see  him  myself,  if  you  won't," 
said  her  ladyship  firmly.  There  was  frigid 
silence  at  the  table  for  a  full  minute,  relieved 
only  when  his  lordship's  monocle  dropped 
into  the  glass  of  water  he  was  trying  to  con 
vey  to  his  lips.  He  thought  best  to  treat 
the  subject  lightly,  so  he  laughed  in  his  most 
jovial  way. 

"You'd  better  take  a  mackintosh  with 
you,  my  dear,"  he  said.  "  Remember  what 
he  told  Tompkins  and  James." 

"  He  will  not  throw  me  into  the  river.  It 
might  be  different  if  you  went.  Therefore 
I  think  —  " 

"Throw  me  in,  would  he?"  and  Bazel- 
hurst  laughed  loudly.  "  I  'm  no  groom, 
my  dear.  You  forget  that  it  is  possible  for 
Mr.  Shaw  to  be  soused." 

"  He  was  good  enough  to  souse  himself 
this  morning,"  volunteered  Penelope.  /£  I 
rather  like  him." 

"  By  Jove,  Cecil,  you  're  not  afraid  to  meet 
him,  are  you?"  asked  the  duke  with  tanta 
lizing  coolness.  "  You  know,  if  you  are, 
I  '11  go  over  and  talk  to  the  fellow." 

"  Afraid  ?      Now,  hang  it  all,  Barminster, 


A  YOUNG  MAN  TRESPASSES     19 

that 's  rather  a  shabby  thing  to  suggest. 
You  forget  India." 

"  I  'm  trying  to.  Demmed  miserable  time 
I  had  out  there.  But  this  fellow  fights. 
That's  more  than  the  beastly  natives  did 
when  we  were  out  there.  Marching  is  n't 
fighting,  you  know." 

"  Confound  it,  you  forget  the  time  — 

"  Mon  Dieu,  are  we  to  compare  ze  Hindoo 
harem  wiz  ze  American  feest  slugger  ?  " 
cried  the  count,  with  a  wry  face. 

"  What 's  that  ?  "  demanded  two  noble 
men  in  one  voice.  The  count  apologized 
for  his  English. 

"  No  one  but  a  coward  would  permit  this 
disagreeable  Shaw  creature  to  run  affairs  in 
such  a  high-handed  way,"  said  her  ladyship. 
"  Of  course  Cecil  is  not  a  coward." 

"  Thank  you,  my  dear.  Never  fear,  ladies 
and  gentlemen  ;  I  shall  attend  to  this  per 
son.  He  won't  soon  forget  what  I  have 
to  say  to  him,"  promised  Lord  Bazelhurst, 
mentally  estimating  the  number  of  brandies 
and  soda  it  would  require  in  preparation. 

"  This  afternoon  ? "  asked  his  wife,  with 
cruel  insistence. 

"Yes,  Evelyn  — if  I  can  find  him." 

And    so    it   was    that   shortly  after   four 


d 


I* 

Q 


.0? 


9 


2o  COWARDICE  COURT 

o'clock,  Lord  Bazelhurst,  unattended  at  his 
own  request,  rode  forth  like  a  Lochinvar, 
his  steed  headed  bravely  toward  Shaw's 
domain,  his  back  facing  his  own  home  with 
a  military  indifference  that  won  applause 
from  the  assembled  house  party. 

"I  '11  face  him  alone,"  he  had  said,  a  trifle 
thickly,  for  some  unknown  reason,  when 
the  duke  offered  to  accompany  him.  It 
also  might  have  been  noticed  as  he  cantered 
down  the  drive  that  his  legs  did  not  stick 
out  so  stiffly,  nor  did  his  person  bob  so 
exactingly  as  on  previous  but  peaceful 
expeditions. 

In  fact,  he  seemed  a  bit  limp.  But  his 
face  was  set  determinedly  for  the  border  line 
and  Shaw. 


Hi 


CHAPTER    II 

IN    WHICH    A    YOUNG    WOMAN    TRESPASSES 

1VJ.R.  SHAW  was  a  tall  young  man  of 
thirty  or  thereabouts,  smooth-faced,  good- 
looking  and  athletic.  It  was  quite  true  that 
he  wore  a  red  coat  when  tramping  through 
his  woods  and  vales,  not  because  it  was  fash 
ionable,  but  because  he  had  a  vague  horror 
of  being  shot  at  by  some  near-sighted  nimrod 
from  Manhattan.  A  crowd  of  old  college 
friends  had  just  left  him  alone  in  the  hills 
after  spending  several  weeks  at  his  place, 
and  his  sole  occupation  these  days,  aside 
from  directing  the  affairs  about  the  house 
and  grounds,  lay  in  the  efforts  to  commune 
with  nature  by  means  of  a  shotgun  and  a 
fishing-rod.  His  most  constant  companion 
was  a  pipe,  his  most  loyal  follower  a  dog. 

As  he  sauntered  slowly  down  the  river 
road  that  afternoon,  smiling  retrospectively 


22 


COWARDICE  COURT 


from  time  to  time  as  he  looked  into  the 
swift,  narrow  stream  that  had  welcomed  his 
adversaries  of  the  morning,  he  little  thought 
of  the  encounter  in  store  for  him.  The 
little  mountain  stream  was  called  a  river  by 
courtesy  because  it  was  yards  wider  than  the 
brooks  that  struggled  im potently  to  surpass 
it  during  the  rainy  season.  But  it  was  deep 
and  turbulent  in  places  and  it  had  a  roar  at 
times  that  commanded  the  respect  of  the 
foolhardy. 

"The  poor  devils  might  have  drowned, 
eh,  Bonaparte  ?  "  he  mused,  addressing  the 
dog  at  his  side.  "  Confounded  nuisance, 
getting  wet  after  all,  though.  Lord  Bazel- 
hurst  wants  war,  does  he  ?  That  log  down 
there  is  the  dividing  line  in  our  river,  eh? 
And  I  have  to  stay  on  this  side  of  it.  By 
George,  he  's  a  mean-spirited  person.  And 
it's  his  wife's  land,  too.  I  wonder  what 
she  's  like.  It 's  a  pity  a  fellow  can't  have 
a  quiet,  decent  summer  up  here  in  the  hills. 
Still "  —  lighting  his  pipe  — "  I  daresay  I  can 
give  as  well  as  I  take.  If  I  stay  off  his  land, 
they  '11  have  to  keep  off  of  mine.  Hullo, 
who 's  that  ?  A  man,  by  George,  but  he 
looks  like  a  partridge.  As  I  live,  Bonaparte 
is  pointing.  Ha,  ha,  that's  one  on  you, 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES     23 

Bony."  Mr.  Shaw  stepped  into  the  brush 
at  the  side  of  the  path  and  watched  the 
movements  of  the  man  at  the  "  log,"  now 
less  than  one  hundred  yards  away. 

Lord  Bazelhurst,  attired  in  his  brown 
corduroys  and  his  tan  waistcoat,  certainly 
suggested  the  partridge  as  he  hopped  nimbly 
about  in  the  distant  foreground,  cocking  his 
ears  from  time  to  time  with  all  the  aloofness 
of  that  wily  bird.  He  was,  strange  to  relate, 
some  little  distance  from  Bazelhurst  terri 
tory,  an  actual  if  not  a  confident  trespasser 
upon  Shaw's  domain.  His  horse,  however, 
was  tethered  to  a  sapling  on  the  safe  side  of 
the  log,  comfortably  browsing  on  Bazelhurst 
grass.  Randolph  Shaw,  an  unseen  observer, 
was  considerably  mystified  by  the  actions  of 
his  unusual  visitor. 

His  lordship  paced  back  and  forth  with 
a  stride  that  grew  firmer  as  time  brought 
forth  no  hostile  impediments.  His  monocle 
ever  and  anon  was  directed  both  high  and 
low  in  search  of  Shaw  or  his  henchmen, 
while  his  face  was  rapidly  resolving  itself 
into  a  bloom  of  rage. 

"  Confound  him,"  his  lordship  was  mut 
tering,  looking  at  his  timepiece  with  stern 
disapproval ;  cc  he  can't  expect  me  to  wait 


24  COWARDICE  COURT 

here  all  day.  I  'm  on  his  land  and  I  *11  stay 
here  as  long  as  I  like."  (At  this  juncture 
he  involuntarily  measured  the  distance  be-  , 
tween  himself  and  the  log.)  "  I  knew  it 
was  all  a  bluff,  his  threat  to  put  me  off. 
Hang  it  all,  where  is  the  fellow  ?  I  won't 
go  up  to  his  beastly  house.  I  won't  gratify 
him  by  going  up  there  even  to  give  him 
his  orders.  Demmed  cad,  blowhard  !  Five 
o'clock,  confound  him  !  I  daresay  he 's 
seen  me  and  has  crawled  off  into  the  under 
brush.  He's  afraid  of  me;  he's  a  coward. 
It  is  as  I  feared.  I  can't  see  the  rascal. 
There  's  only  one  thing  left  for  me  to  do. 
I  '11  pin  a  note  to  this  tree.  Confound  him,  he 
shall  hear  from  me ;  he  '11  have  to  read  it." 

Whereupon  his  lordship  drew  forth  a 
large  envelope  from  his  pocket  and  pro 
ceeded  to  fasten  it  to  the  trunk  of  a  big 
tree  which  grew  in  the  middle  of  the  road, 
an  act  of  premeditation  which  showed  strange 
powers  of  prophecy.  How  could  he,  ex 
cept  by  means  of  clairvoyance,  have  known 
before  leaving  home  that  he  was  not  to 
meet  his  enemy  face  to  face  ? 

As  Mr.  Shaw  afterwards  read  the  note 
and  tossed  it  into  the  river,  it  is  only  fair 
that  the  world  should  know  its  contents 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES    25 

while  it  hung  unfolded  to  the  bark  of  the 
tall  tree.  It  said,  in  a  very  scrawling  hand  : 
cc  Mr.  Shaw,  I  have  looked  all  over  this  end 
of  your  land  for  you  this  afternoon.  You 
doubtless  choose  to  avoid  me.  So  be  it. 
Let  me  state,  once  and  for  all,  that  your 
conduct  is  despicable.  I  came  here  person 
ally  to  tell  you  to  keep  off  my  land,  hence 
forth  and  for  ever.  I  will  not  repeat  this 
warning,  but  will  instead,  if  you  persist,  take 
such  summary  measures  as  would  befit  a 
person  of  your  instincts.  I  trust  you  will 
feel  the  importance  of  keeping  off."  To 
this  his  lordship  bravely  signed  himself. 

"  There,"  he  muttered,  again  holding  his 
watch  and  fob  up  for  close  inspection. 
"He '11  not  soon  overlook  what  I've  said 
in  that  letter,  confound  him." 

He  had  not  observed  the  approach  of 
Randolph  Shaw,  who  now  stood,  pipe  in 
hand,  some  twenty  paces  behind  him  in  the 
road. 

"  What  the  devil  are  you  doing  ? "  de 
manded  a  strong  bass  voice.  It  had  the 
effect  of  a  cannon  shot. 

His  lordship  leaped  half  out  of  his  cordu 
roys,  turned  with  agonizing  abruptness  to 
ward  the  tall  young  man,  and  gasped  "  Oh  !  " 


OP. 


26  COWARDICE  COURT 

so  shrilly  that  his  horse  looked  up  with  a 
start.  The  next  instant  his  watch  dropped 
forgotten  from  his  fingers  and  his  nimble 
little  legs  scurried  for  territory  beyond  the 
log.  Nor  did  he  pause  upon  reaching  that 
supposedly  safe  ground.  The  swift  glance 
he  gave  the  nearby  river  was  significant  as 
well  as  apprehensive.  It  moved  him  to 
increased  but  unpolished  haste. 

He  leaped  frantically  for  the  saddle,  scorn 
ing  the  stirrups,  landing  broadside  but  with 
sufficient  nervous  energy  in  reserve  to 
scramble  on  and  upward  into  the  seat. 
Once  there,  he  kicked  the  animal  in  the 
flanks  with  both  heels,  clutching  with  his 
knees  and  reaching  for  the  bridle  rein  in  the 
same  motion.  The  horse  plunged  obedi 
ently,  but  came  to  a  stop  with  a  jerk  that  al 
most  unseated  the  rider  ;  the  sapling  swayed  ; 
the  good  but  forgotten  rein  held  firm. 

"  Ha  !  "  gasped  his  lordship  as  the  horrid 
truth  became  clear  to  him. 

"Charge,  Bonaparte !"  shouted  the  man 
in  the  road. 

"  Soldiers  ? "  cried  the  rider  with  a  wild 
look  among  the  trees. 

"  My  dog,"  called  back  the  other.  "  He 
charges  at  the  word." 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES    27 

"  Well,  you  know,  I  saw  service  in  the 
army,"  apologized  his  lordship,  with  a  pale 
smile.  "  Get  ep  !  "  to  the  horse. 

"What's  your  hurry?"  asked  Shaw, 
grinning  broadly  as  he  came  up  to  the  log. 

"  Don't  —  don't  you  dare  to  step  over 
that  log,"  shouted  Bazelhurst. 

"  All  right.  I  see.  But,  after  all,  what  's 
the  rush  ?  "  The  other  was  puzzled  for  the 
moment. 

"I  'm  practising,  sir,"  he  said  unsteadily. 
"  How  to  mount  on  a  run,  demmit.  Can't 
you  see  ?  " 

"  In  case  of  fire,  I  imagine.  Well,  you 
made  excellent  time.  By  the  way,  what  has 
this  envelope  to  do  with  it  ?  " 

"  Who  are  you,  sir  ?  " 

"  Shaw.     And  you  ?  " 

"  You  '11  learn  when  you  read  that  docu 
ment.  Take  it  home  with  you." 

"  Ah,  yes,  I  see  it's  for  me.  Why  don't 
you  untie  that  hitch  rein?  And  what  the 
dickens  do  you  mean  by  having  a  hitch  rein, 


anyway 


?     No  rider  —  " 


"  Confound  your  impudence,  sir,  I  did 
not  come  here  to  receive  instructions  from 
you,  dem  you,"  cried  his  lordship  defiantly. 
He  had  succeeded  at  that  moment  in  sur- 


Z^ 

\/] 


28  COWARDICE   COURT 

reptitiously  slashing  the  hitch  rein  in  two 
with  his  pocketknife.  There  was  nothing 
now  to  prevent  him  from  giving  the  ob 
trusive  young  man  a  defiant  farewell.  "  I 
am  Lord  Bazelhurst.  Good  day,  sir !  " 

"  Just  a  minute,  your  lordship,"  called 
Shaw.  "  No  doubt  you  were  timing  yourself 
a  bit  ago,  but  that 's  no  reason  why  you 
should  leave  your  watch  on  my  land.  Of 
course,  I  've  nothing  against  the  watch,  and, 
while  I  promise  you  faithfully  that  any  hu 
man  being  from  your  side  of  the  log  who 
ventures  over  on  my  side  shall  be  ejected  in 
one  way  or  another,  it  would  seem  senseless 
for  me  to  kick  this  timepiece  into  the  middle 
of  next  week." 

"  Don't  you  dare  kick  that  watch.  It 's  a 
hundred  years  old." 

"  Far  be  it  from  me  to  take  advantage  of 
anything  so  old.  Don't  you  want  it  any 
longer?" 

"  Certainly,  sir.     I  would  n't  part  from  it." 

"  Then  why  don't  you  come  over  and  get 
it?  Do  you  expect  me  to  break  the  rule  by 
coming  over  on  to  your  land  to  hand  it  to 
you  ? " 

"  I  should  n't  call  that  trespassing,  don't 
you  know,"  began  his  lordship. 


Hi 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES    29 

"Ah?  Nevertheless,  if  you  want  this 
watch  you  '11  have  to  come  over  and  get  it." 

"By  Jove,  now,  that's  a  demmed  mean 
trick.  I  'm  mounted.  Beastly  annoying.  I 
say,  would  you  mind  tossing  it  up  to  me  ?  " 

"  I  would  n't  touch  it  for  ten  dollars. 
By  the  way,  I  '11  just  read  this  note  of  yours." 
Lord  Bazelhurst  nervously  watched  him  as 
he  read ;  his  heart  lightened  perceptibly  as 
he  saw  a  good-humoured  smile  struggle  to 
the  tall  young  man's  face.  It  was,  however, 
with  some  misgiving  that  he  studied  the 
broad  shoulders  and  powerful  frame  of  the 
erstwhile  poacher.  "  Very  good  of  you,  I  'm 
sure,  to  warn  me." 

"  Good  of  me  ?  It  was  imperative,  let 
me  tell  you,  sir.  No  man  can  abuse  my 
servants  and  trample  all  over  my  land  and 
disturb  my  fish  —  " 

"  Excuse  me,  but  I  have  n't  time  to  listen 
to  all  that.  The  note  's  sufficient.  You  Ve 
been  practising  the  running  mount  until  it 
looks  well  nigh  perfect  to  me,  so  I  '11  tell 
you  what  I  '11  do.  I  '11  step  back  thirty 
paces  and  then  you  come  over  and  get  the 
watch  —  if  you're  not  afraid  of  me  —  and 
I  '11  promise  —  " 

"  Afraid  ?      Demmit,  sir,  did  n't  I    say    I 


iH 


30  COWARDICE  COURT 

was  Lord  Bazelhurst  ?  Of  the  Guards,  sir, 
and  the  Seventy-first?  Conf — " 

"  You  come  over  and  get  the  watch  and 
then  see  if  you  can  get  back  to  the  horse 
and  mount  before  I  get  to  the  log.  If  I  beat 
you  there,  you  lose.  How  's  that  ?  " 

4C I  decline  to  make  a  fool  of  myself. 
Either  you  will  restore  my  watch  to  me,  or 
I  shall  instantly  go  before  the  authorities  and 
take  out  a  warrant.  I  came  to  see  you  on 
business,  sir,  not  folly.  Lady  Bazelhurst 
herself  would  have  come  had  I  been  otherwise 
occupied,  and  I  want  to  assure  you  of  her  con 
tempt.  You  are  a  disgrace  to  her  country 
men.  If  you  ever  put  foot  on  our  land  I  shall 
have  you  thrown  into  the  river.  Demmit, 
sir,  it 's  no  laughing  matter.  My  watch,  sir." 

"  Come  and  get  it." 

"  Scalawag  !  " 

"  By  George,  do  you  know  if  you  get  too 
personal  I  will  come  over  there."  Randolph 
Shaw  advanced  with  a  threatening  scowl. 

"  Ha,  ha  !  "  laughed  his  lordship  shrilly  ; 
"  I  dare  you ! "  He  turned  his  horse's 
head  for  home  and  moved  off  a  yard  or 
more.  "  Whoa  !  Curse  you  !  This  is  the 
demdest  horse  to  manage  I  Ve  ever  owned. 
Stand  still,  confound  you  !  Whoa  !  " 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES    31 

"He'll  stand  if  you  stop  licking  him." 

"Halloa!  Hey,  Bazelhurst ! "  came  a 
far  distant  voice.  The  adversaries  glanced 
down  the  road  and  beheld  two  horsemen 
approaching  from  Bazelhurst  Villa  —  the 
duke  and  the  count. 

"  By  Jove ! "  muttered  his  lordship,  sud 
denly  deciding  that  it  would  not  be  conven 
ient  for  them  to  appear  on  the  scene  at  its 
present  stage.  "My  friends  are  calling  me. 
Her  ladyship  doubtless  is  near  at  hand. 
She  rides,  you  know  —  I  mean  dem  you  ! 
Would  n't  have  her  see  you  for  a  fortune. 
Not  another  word,  sir !  You  have  my 
orders.  Stay  off  or  I  '11  —  throw  you  off!  " 
This  last  threat  was  almost  shrieked  and 
was  plainly  heard  by  the  two  horsemen. 

"By  Jove,  he's  facing  the  fellow/'  said 
the  duke  to  the  count. 

"  Ees  eet  Shaw  ?     Parbleu  !  " 

"  I  '11  send  some  one  for  that  watch. 
Don't  you  dare  to  touch  it,"  said  his  lord 
ship  in  tones  barely  audible.  Then  he 
loped  off  to  meet  his  friends  and  turn  them 
back  before  they  came  too  close  for  comfort. 
Randolph  Shaw  laughed  heartily  as  he 
watched  the  retreat.  Seeing  the  newcomers 
halt  and  then  turn  abruptly  back  into  their 


COWARDICE  COURT 


tracks  he  picked  up  the  watch  and  strolled 
off  into  the  woods,  taking  a  short  cut  for 
the  dirt  road  which  led  up  to  his  house. 

"  I  had  him  begging  for  mercy/'  ex 
plained  his  lordship  as  he  rode  along.  "  I 
was  on  his  land  for  half  an  hour  before 
he  would  come  within  speaking  distance. 
Come  along.  I  need  a  drink." 

Young  Mr.  Shaw  came  to  the  road  in 
due  time  and  paused,  after  his  climb,  to  rest 
on  a  stone  at  the  wayside.  He  was  still  a 
mile  from  home  and  in  the  loneliest  part 
of  his  domain.  The  Bazelhurst  line  was 
scarcely  a  quarter  of  a  mile  behind  him. 
Trees  and  underbrush  grew  thick  and  im 
penetrable  alongside  the  narrow,  winding 
road ;  the  light  of  heaven  found  it  difficult 
to  struggle  through  to  the  highway  below. 
Picturesque  but  lonely  and  sombre  indeed 
were  his  surroundings. 

"  Some  one  coming  ? "  he  said  aloud,  as 
Bonaparte  pricked  up  his  ears  and  looked 
up  the  road.  A  moment  later  a  horse  and 
rider  turned  the  bend  a  hundred  yards  away 
and  came  slowly  toward  him.  He  started 
to  his  feet  with  an  exclamation.  The  rider 
was  a  woman  and  she  was  making  her 
way  leisurely  toward  the  Bazelhurst  lands. 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES 

"  Lady  Bazelhurst,  I  '11  bet  my  hat," 
thought  he  with  a  quiet  whistle.  "By 
George,  this  is  awkward.  My  first  tres 
passer  is  in  petticoats.  I  say,  she 's  a 
beauty  —  a  ripping  beauty.  Lord,  Lord, 
what  do  such  women  mean  by  giving  them 
selves  to  little  rats  like  Bazelhurst  ?  Oh, 
the  shame  of  it !  Well,  it 's  up  to  me  !  If 
I  expect  to  c  make  good,'  I  Ve  just  got  to 
fire  her  off  these  grounds." 

Naturally  he  expected  to  be  very  polite 
about  it  —  instinctively  so;  he  could  not 
have  been  otherwise.  The  horsewoman 
saw  him  step  into  the  middle  of  the  road, 
smiling  oddly  but  deferentially ;  her  slim 
figure  straightened,  her  colour  rose,  and  there 
was  a  —  yes,  there  was  a  relieved  gleam  in 
her  eyes.  As  she  drew  near  he  advanced, 
hat  in  hand,  his  face  uplifted  in  his  most 
winning  smile  —  savouring  more  of  welcome 
than  of  repellence. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,"  he  said ;  "  doubt 
less  you  are  not  aware  that  this  is  proscribed 
land." 

"Then  you  are  Mr.  Shaw?"  she  asked, 
checking  her  horse  with  premeditated  sur 
prise  and  an  emphasis  that  puzzled  him. 

"  Yes,    madam,"    he    responded  gravely, 


o 


34 


COWARDICE  COURT 


>»  \ 

d 


"  the  hated  Shaw.  Permit  me,"  and  he 
politely  grasped  the  bridle  rein.  To  her 
amazement  he  deliberately  turned  and  began 
to  lead  her  horse,  willy  nilly,  down  the  road, 
very  much  as  if  she  were  a  child  taking  her 
first  riding  lesson. 

"  What  are  you  doing,  sir  ? "  she  ex 
claimed  sharply.  There  was  a  queer  flutter 
of  helplessness  in  her  voice. 

"  Putting  you  off,"  he  answered  laconi 
cally.  She  laughed  in  delight  and  he  looked 
up  with  a  relieved  smile.  "  I  'm  glad  you 
don't  mind.  I  have  to  do  it.  These  feuds 
are  such  beastly  things,  you  know.  One  has 
to  live  up  to  them  whether  he  likes  it  or  not." 

"  So  you  are  putting  me  off  your  place  ? 
Oh,  how  lovely  !  " 

"  It  isn't  far,  you  know — just  down  by 
those  big  rocks.  Your  line  is  there.  Of 
course,"  he  went  on  politely,  "  you  know 
that  there  is  a  feud." 

"  Oh,  yes ;  I  Ve  heard  you  discussed. 
Besides,  I  met  Tompkins  and  James  this 
morning.  Pardon  me,  Mr.  Shaw,  but  I 
fancy  'I  can  get  on  without  being  led. 
Would  you  mind  —  " 

"  My  dear  madam,  there  is  no  alternative. 
I  have  taken  a  solemn  vow  personally  to 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES    35 

eject  all  Bazelhurst  trespassers  from  my 
place.  You  forget  that  I  am,  by  your 
orders,  to  be  thrown  into  the  river  and  all 
that.  Don't  be  alarmed  !  I  don't  mean  to 
throw  you  into  the  river." 

"By  my  orders?  It  seems  to  me  that  you 
have  confused  me  with  Lord  Bazelhurst." 

"  Heaven  has  given  me  keener  perception, 
your  ladyship.  I  have  seen  his  lordship." 

"  Ah,  may  I  inquire  whether  he  was  par 
ticularly  rough  with  you  this  afternoon  ?  " 

"  I  trust  I  am  too  chivalrous  to  answer 
that  question." 

"  You  are  quite  dry." 

"  Thank  you.  I  deserve  the  rebuke,  all 
right." 

"  Oh,  I  mean  you  have  n't  been  in  the 
river." 

"  Not  since  morning.  Am  I  walking  too 
fast  for  you  ?  " 

"  Not  at  all.  One  could  n't  ask  to  be  put 
off  more  considerately." 

"  By  Jove,"  he  said  involuntarily,  his  ad 
miration  getting  the  better  of  him. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,"  with  slightly  ele 
vated  eyebrows. 

"Do  you  know,  you're  not  at  all  what 
I  imagined  you  'd  be." 


36  COWARDICE  COURT 

"  Oh  ?  And  I  fancy  I  'm  not  at  all  whom 
you  imagined  me  to  be." 

"  Heavens  !  Am  I  ejecting  an  innocent 
bystander?  You  are  Lady  Bazelhurst?" 

"  I  am  Penelope  Drake.  But  "  —  she 
added  quickly  —  "I  am  an  enemy.  I  am 
Lord  Bazelhurst's  sister." 

"  You  —  you  don't  mean  it  ?  " 

"  Are  you  disappointed  ?     I  'm  sorry." 

"  I  am  staggered  and  —  a  bit  skeptical. 
There  is  no  resemblance." 

"  I  am  a  bit  taller,"  she  admitted  carefully. 
"  It  is  n't  dreadfully  immodest,  is  it,  for  one 
to  hold  converse  with  her  captor  ?  I  am 
in  your  power,  you  see." 

"  On  the  contrary,  it  is  quite  the  thing. 
The  heroine  always  converses  with  the  villain 
in  books.  She  tells  him  what  she  thinks  of 
him." 

"  But  this  isn't  a  book  and  I'm  not  a 
heroine.  I  am  the  adventuress.  Will  you 
permit  me  to  explain  my  presence  on  your 
land  ? " 

"No  excuse  is  necessary.  You  were 
caught  red-handed  and  you  don't  have  to 
say  anything  to  incriminate  yourself  further." 

"But  it  is  scarcely  a  hundred  feet  to  our 
line.  In  a  very  few  minutes  I  shall  be 


Hi 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES 

hurled  relentlessly  from  your  land  and  may 
never  have  another  chance  to  tell  why  I 
dared  to  venture  over  here.  You  see,  you 
have  a  haunted  house  on  your  land  and 
I_"  She  hesitated. 

"  I  see.  The  old  Kenwood  cottage  on 
the  hill.  Been  deserted  for  years.  Ren- 
wood  brought  his  wife  up  here  in  the  moun 
tains  long  ago  and  murdered  her.  She 
comes  back  occasionally,  they  say ;  mysteri 
ous  noises  and  lights  and  all  that.  Well  ?  " 

"Well,  I  'm  very  much  interested  in 
spooks.  In  spite  of  the  feud  I  rode  over 
here  for  a  peep  at  the  house.  Dear  me, 
it's  a  desolate  looking  place.  I  didn't  go 
inside,  of  course.  Why  don't  you  tear  it 
down  ? " 

"And  deprive  the  ghost  of  house  and 
home  ?  That  would  be  heartless.  Besides, 
it  serves  as  an  attraction  to  bring  visitors  to 
my  otherwise  unalluring  place.  I  'm  terribly 
sorry  the  fortunes  of  war  prevent  me  from 
offering  to  take  you  through  the  house. 
But  as  long  as  you  remain  a  Bazelhurst  I 
can't  neglect  my  vow.  Of  course,  I  don't 
mean  to  say  that  you  cant  come  and  do  what 
you  please  over  here,  but  you  shall  be  recog 
nized  and  treated  as  a  trespasser." 


38  COWARDICE  COURT 

"  Oh,  that 's  just  splendid  !  Perhaps  I  '11 
come  to-morrow." 

"  I  shall  be  obliged  to  escort  you  from  the 
grounds,  you  know." 

"  Yes,  I  know,"  she  said  agreeably.  He 
looked  dazed  and  delighted.  "  Of  course, 
I  shall  come  with  stealth  and  darkly.  Not 
even  my  brother  shall  know  of  my  plans." 

"  Certainly  not,"  he  said  with  alacrity. 
(They  were  nearing  the  line.)  "  Depend  on 
me." 

"  Depend  on  you  ?  .  Your  only  duty  is  to 
scare  me  off  the  place." 

"  That 's  what  I  mean.  I  '11  keep  sharp 
watch  for  you  up  at  the  haunted  house." 

"  It  's  more  than  a  mile  from  the  line," 
she  advised  him. 

"Yes,  I  know,"  said  he,  with  his  friend 
liest  smile.  ccOh,  by  the  way,  would  you 
mind  doing  your  brother  a  favour,  Miss 
Drake?  Give  him  this  watch.  He  —  er — he 
must  have  dropped  it  while  pursuing  me." 

"  You  ran?  "  she  accepted  the  watch  with 
surprise  and  unbelief. 

"  Here  is  the  line,  Miss  Drake,"  he 
evaded.  "  Consider  yourself  ignominiously 
ejected.  Have  I  been  unnecessarily  rough 
and  expeditious  ?  " 


H 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES    39 

"  You  have  had  a  long  and  tiresome  walk," 
she  said,  settling  herself  for  a  merry  clip. 
"  Please  don't  step  on  our  side."  He  re 
leased  the  bridle  rein  and  doffed  his  hat. 

"  I  shall  bring  my  horse  to-morrow,"  he 
remarked  significantly. 

"  I  may  bring  the  duke,"  she  said  sweetly. 

"In  that  case  I  shall  have  to  bring  an 
extra  man  to  lead  his  horse.  It  won't 
matter." 

"  So  this  rock  is  the  dividing  line  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  you  are  on  the  safe  side  now  — 
and  so  am  I,  for  that  matter.  The  line  is 
here,"  and  he  drew  a  broad  line  in  the  dust 
from  one  side  of  the  road  to  the  other. 
"  My  orders  are  that  you  are  not  to  ride 
across  that  line,  at  your  peril." 

"  And  you  are  not  to  cross  it  either,  at 
your  peril." 

"  Do  you  dare  me  ?  "  with  an  eager  step 
forward. 

"  Good-bye." 

"  Good-bye  !  I  say,  are  you  sure  you  can 
find  the  Kenwood  cottage  ?  "  he  called  after 
her.  The  answer  came  back  through  the 
clatter  of  hoofs,  accompanied  by  a  smile  that 
seduced  his  self-possession. 

"  I  shall  find  it  in  time." 


H 


<o 


COWARDICE  COURT 

For  a  long  time  he  stood  watching  her  as 
she  raced  down  the  road. 

"  At  my  peril/'  he  mused,  shaking  his 
head  with  a  queer  smile.  "  By  George,  that 's 
fair  warning  enough.  She  's  beautiful." 

At  dinner  that  night  the  Honourable  Pen 
elope  restored  the  watch  to  her  brother,  much 
to  his  embarrassment,  for  he  had  told  the 
duke  it  was  being  repaired  in  town. 

"  It  was  n't  this  watch  that  I  meant,  old 
chap,"  he  announced,  irrelevantly,  to  the 
duke,  quite  red  in  the  face.  "  Where  did 
you  find  it,  Pen  ?  "  She  caught  the  plea  in 
his  eye  and  responded  loyally. 

"You  dropped  it,  I  daresay,  in  pursuing 
Mr.  Shaw." 

The  positive  radiance  which  followed  dis 
may  in  his  watery  eyes  convinced  her  beyond 
all  doubt  that  her  brother's  encounter  with 
the  tall  Mr.  Shaw  was  not  quite  creditable  to 
Bazclhurst  arms.  She  listened  with  pensive 
indifference  to  the  oft-repeated  story  of  how 
he  had  routed  the  "  insufferable  cad,"  en 
couraged  by  the  support  of  champagne  and 
the  solicited  approval  of  two  eye-witnesses. 
She  could  not  repress  the  mixed  feelings  of 
scorn,  shame,  and  pity,  as  she  surveyed  the 
array  of  men  who  so  mercilessly  flayed  the 


A  YOUNG  WOMAN  TRESPASSES   41 

healthy,  fair-faced  young  man  with  the  gentle 
strength. 

The  house  party  had  been  augmented 
during  the  day  by  the  arrival  of  half  a  dozen 
men  and  women  from  the  city,  brain-fagged, 
listless,  and  smart.  The  big  cottage  now 
was  full,  the  company  complete  for  three 
weeks  at  least.  She  looked  ahead,  this 
fresh,  vigorous  young  Englishwoman,  and 
wondered  how  she  was  to  endure  the  stale- 
ness  of  life. 

There  was  some  relief  in  the  thought  that 
the  men  would  make  love  to  the  good- 
looking  young  married  women  —  at  least 
part  of  the  time  —  and — but  it  depressed 
her  in  turn  to  think  of  the  left-over  hus 
bands  who  would  make  love  to  her. 

"  Why  is  it  that  Evelyn  does  n't  have 
real  men  here  —  like  this  Mr.  Shaw  ?  "  she 
found  herself  wondering  vaguely  as  the  night 


9, 


M  1 

9 


CHAPTER    III 

IN    WHICH    A    DOG    TRESPASSES 

JL  ENELOPE  was  a  perverse  and  calculat 
ing  young  person.  She  was  her  own  mis 
tress  and  privileged  to  ride  as  often  as  she 
pleased,  but  it  seemed  rather  odd  —  although 
splendidly  decorous  —  that  she  did  not  ven 
ture  upon  Mr.  Shaw's  estate  for  more  than 
a  week  after  her  first  encounter  with  the 
feudal  baron.  If  she  found  a  peculiarly  femi 
nine  satisfaction  in  speculating  on  his  dis 
appointment,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at. 
Womanly  insight  told  her  that  Randolph 
Shaw  rode  forth  each  day  and  watched  with 
hawk-like  vigilance  for  the  promised  tres 
passer.  In  her  imagination,  she  could  almost 
hear  him  curse  the  luck  that  was  helping  her 
to  evade  the  patrol. 

One  morning,  after  a  rain,  she  rode  with 
the  duke  to  the  spot  where  Shaw  had  drawn 


H 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    43 

his  line  in  the  road.  She  felt  a  thrill  of 
something  she  could  not  define  on  discover 
ing  that  the  wet  soil  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  line  was  disfigured  by  a  mass  of  fresh 
hoof-prints.  She  rejoiced  to  find  that  his 
vigil  was  incessant  and  worthy  of  the  respect 
it  imposed.  The  desire  to  visit  the  haunted 
house  was  growing  more  and  more  irresisti 
ble,  but  she  turned  it  aside  with  all  the 
relentless  perverseness  of  a  woman  who  feels 
it  worth  while  to  procrastinate. 

Truth  to  tell,  Randolph  Shaw  was  going 
hollow-eyed  and  faint  in  his  ceaseless,  rack 
ing  watch  for  trespassers. 

Penelope  laughed  aloud  as  she  gazed 
upon  the  tangle  of  hoof-prints.  The  duke 
looked  as  surprised  as  it  was  possible  for 
him  to  look  after  the  wear  of  the  past 
night. 

"  Hang  it  all,  Penelope,''  he  said.  "  I 
did  n't  say  anything,  don't  you  know."  MI/V^ 

"  I  was  just  thinking,"  she  said  hastily,  (ll\\/ 
cc  what  fun  it  would  be  for  us  to  explore  the 
haunted  house." 

"Oh,  I  say,  Pen,  that's  going  out  of  the 
way  for  a  little  fun,  is  n't  it  ?  My  word,  it 's 
a  filthy  old  house  with  rats  and  mice  and  all 
that —  no  place  for  a  ghost,  much  less  a  nice 


44 


COWARDICE   COURT 


all 


little  human   being  like  you.     They  're 
like  that." 

"  I  think  you  are  afraid  to  go,"  said 
she. 

"  Afraid  of  ghosts  ?  Pshaw  !  "  sniffed  the 
duke,  sticking  out  his  chest. 

"  Yes,  Shaw  !  That  Js  whom  you  're  afraid 
of." 

"Now,  see  here,  Pen,  you  should  n't  say 
that.  Shaw  's  a  d  —  ,  a  cad.  See  what  Cecil 
did  to  him.  Remember  that  ?  Well,  pooh! 
What  would  /  do  to  him  ?  "  Penelope 
looked  him  over  critically. 

"  I  '11  admit  that  you  're  larger  and  younger 
than  Cecil,"  she  confessed  grudgingly.  "  But 
they  say  Mr.  Shaw  is  a  giant-killer."  The 
duke  dropped  his  monocle  and  guffawed 
loudly. 

"  Good!"  he  cried  in  the  ecstasy  of  pride. 
His  worn,  dissipated  face  lighted  up  with 
unwonted  interest.  "  I  say,  Pen,  that  's  the 
nicest  thing  you  've  said  to  me  in  a  week. 
You  Ve  been  so  deuced  cold  of  late.  I 
don't  understand.  I  'm  not  such  a  bad  lot, 
you  know." 

"  Tell  that  to  Mrs.  De  Peyton  and  Mrs. 
Corwith.  They  're  looking  for  the  good  in 
everything." 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    45 

"  By  Jove,  I  believe  you  're  jealous  !  This 
is  the  proudest  moment  of  my  life." 

"  Don't  be  silly  !  And  don't  try  to  make 
love  to  me  any  more.  Wait  until  I  'm  mar 
ried,"  she  added  with  a  laugh,  the  irony  of 
which  escaped  him. 

"  But,  hang  it  all,  suppose  you  should 
marry  some  one  else  and  not  me." 

"  That 's  what  I  mean." 

"  Oh  !  "  he  said,  perplexed.  Then,  as  if 
his  stupidity  called  for  an  explanation  :  "  I 
had  a  beastly  night.  Did  n't  go  to  bed  till 
four.  But,  I  say,  why  can't  I  have  the  same 
privilege  as  these  other  chaps  ?  Corwith 
makes  love  to  you  and  so  does  Odwell,  and, 
hang  it,  they  're  both  married.  It 's  rotten 
mean  of —  " 

"Their  wives  are  accountable  for  their 
manners,  not  I.  But,  come  ;  will  you  go  to 
Kenwood's  with  me  ?  " 

"  I  'd  rather  talk  to  you  in  that  nice  little 
corner  of  the  billiard-room  at  home,  if 
you  —  " 

"But  I  don't  need  a  brandy  and  soda. 
Oh  ! "  This  exclamation  came  with  the  dis 
covery  of  an  approaching  horseman.  "  It's 
Mr.  Shaw  —  I  'm  sure." 

Randolph  Shaw,  loyal  to  his  feudal  prom- 


iH 


46 


COWARDICE  COURT 


0 


ise,  appeared  in  the  road  a  couple  of  hundred 
yards  away.  He  drew  rein  and  from  that 
distance  surveyed  the  two  who  were  so  near 
to  encroaching  upon  his  preserves.  He  sat 
straight  and  forbidding  in  the  saddle.  For 
a  full  minute  the  two  factions  stared  at  each 
other.  Then,  without  a  sign  of  recognition, 
Shaw  turned  and  rode  rapidly  away. 

"  He  rides  like  a  gentleman,"  commented 
Miss  Drake,  after  reflection. 

"Indian  blood  in  him,"  remarked  her 
companion. 

"  Let  us  go  home,"  said  she,  whirling  her 
horse  like  a  flash.  The  duke  had  some 
difficulty  in  keeping  abreast  of  her  during 
the  ride  and  he  lost  sight  of  her  alto 
gether  after  they  dismounted  at  Bazelhurst 
Villa. 

The  momentary  glimpse  of  a  real  man  set 
Penelope's  opinions  on  edge  for  the  remain 
der  of  the  day  and  night.  Shaw,  whatever 
else  he  might  be,  was  a  man.  Even  while 
others  addressed  her  in  conversation  she  was 
absent-mindedly  recalling  to  memory  certain 
English  gentlemen  at  home  who  could  stand 
comparison  with  this  handsome  fellow  across 
the  danger  line.  But  to  compare  any  one 
of  the  men  in  Lady  Bazelhurst's  house 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    47 

party  —  oh,  it  was  absurd  !  She  looked 
them  over.  Dull-eyed,  blase,  frayed  by 
the  social  whirl,  worn  out,  pulseless,  all  of 
them.  They  talked  automobile,  bridge, 
women,  and  self  in  particular ;  in  the  seclu 
sion  of  a  tete-a-tete  they  talked  love  with 
an  ardour  that  lost  most  of  its  danger  because 
it  was  from  force  of  habit.  One  of  the  men 
was  even  now  admitting  in  her  ear  that  he 
had  not  spent  an  evening  alone  with  his  wife 
in  four  years. 

"  There 's  always  something  doing,"  he 
said.  "A  week  or  two  ago,  by  Jove,  you 
would  n't  believe  it,  but  we  had  an  evening 
turn  up  without  a  thing  on  hand.  Strangest 
thing  I  ever  knew.  Neither  of  us  had  a 
thing  on.  We  said  we  'd  stay  at  home  and 
go  to  bed  early,  just  to  see  how  it  felt. 
Well,  what  do  you  think  ?  We  sat  up  and 
read  till  half  past  ten  o'clock  and  then  both 
of  us  thought  of  it  at  the  same  time.  We 
dressed  and  went  down  to  Rector's  and 
waited  for  the  theatres  to  let  out.  Three 
o'clock  when  we  got  home.  You  can't  im 
agine  what  a  queer  experience  it  is,  being  all 
alone  with  one's  wife." 

"  Don't  you  love  your  wife,  Mr.  Odwell  ? " 
C£  Certainly;    but  there  's  always  a  crowd." 


48 


COWARDICE  COURT 


Both  of  them  glanced  over  at  pretty  Mrs. 
Odwell.  She  was  looking  down  at  her 
plate  demurely  while  Reggie  Van  Voort 
talked  straight  into  her  pink  ear,  his  eyes 
gleaming  with  the  zest  of  invasion.  "  I 
say,  Miss  Drake,  you  won't  mind  talking 
to  me  awhile  after  dinner,  will  you  ?  " 
went  on  Odwell,  something  like  relief  in 
his  voice. 

After  dinner  she  was  obliged  to  set  him 
straight  in  a  little  matter.  They  were  sitting 
on  the  terrace  and  he  had  thrown  away  his 
half-smoked  cigarette,  an  act  in  itself  signifi 
cant.  She  had  been  listening  patiently,  from 
sheer  habit  and  indifference,  to  what  he  was 
saying,  but  at  last  she  revolted. 

"  Don't !  You  shall  not  say  such  things 
to  me.  I  am  not  your  kind,  I  fancy,  Mr. 
Odwell,"  she  said.  "  I  don't  know  why  you 
should  tell  me  of  your  chorus-girl  friends  — 
of  your  suppers  and  all  that.  I  don't  care 
to  hear  of  them  and  I  don't  intend  that  you 
shall  use  me  as  a  subject  of  illustration.  I 
am  going  upstairs." 

"  Oh,  come  now,  that 's  rather  rough,  just 
as  we  were  getting  on  so  well.  All  the 
fellows  do  the  same  —  " 

"  I  know.     You  need  not  tell  me.     And 


IN   WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    49 

you  all  have  wives  at  home,  too,"  with  in 
tense  scorn. 

<c  Now,  that 's  where  you  wrong  us. 
They  're  not  at  home,  you  know.  That 's 
just  it." 

"  Never  mind,  Mr.  Odwell ;  I  'm  going 
in."  She  left  him  and  entered  the  house. 
For  a  minute  or  two  he  looked  after  her  in 
wonder,  and  then,  softly  whistling,  made  his 
way  over  to  where  De  Peyton,  through  some 
oversight,  was  talking  to  his  own  wife.  De 
Peyton  unceremoniously  announced  that  he 
was  going  upstairs  to  write  a  letter. 

Penelope,  flushed  with  disgust  and  humili 
ation,  drew  near  a  crowd  of  men  and  women 
in  the  long  living-room.  Her  brother  was 
haranguing  the  assemblage,  standing  forth 
among  them  like  an  unconquered  bantam. 
In  spite  of  herself,  she  felt  a  wave  of  shame 
and  pity  creep  over  her  as  she  looked 'at 
him. 

<c  Barminster  says  trie  fellow  ran  when  he 
saw  him  to-day,"  his  lordship  was  saying. 
"But  that  doesn't  help  matters.  He  has 
been  on  my  land  again  and  again,  Tomp- 
kins  says,  and  Tompkins  ought  to  know." 

"  And  James,  too,"  said  the  duke  with  a 
brandied  roar. 


5° 


COWARDICE  COURT 


M  i 

9 


"  Can't  Tompkins  and  his  men  keep  that 
man  off  my  land  ?  "  demanded  Lady  Bazel- 
hurst.  Every  one  took  note  of  the  pro 
noun.  Her  ladyship's  temples  seemed  to 
narrow  with  hatred.  Bazelhurst  had  told 
the  men  privately  that  she  was  passing  sleep 
less  nights  in  order  to  "  hate  that  fellow 
Shaw  "  to  her  full  capacity. 

"  My  dear,  I  have  given  positive  orders 
to  Tompkins  and  he  swears  he'll  carry  them 
out,"  said  he  hastily. 

"I  suppose  Tompkins  is  to  throw  him 
into  the  river  again." 

"  He  is  to  shoot  that  fellow  Shaw  if  he 
does  n't  keep  off  our  land.  I  've  had  enough 
of  it.  They  say  he  rode  his  confounded 
plough  horse  all  over  the  west  end  the 
other  day."  Penelope  smiled  reflectively. 
"  Trampled  the  new  fern  beds  out  of  exist 
ence  and  all  that.  Hang  him,  Tompkins 
will  get  him  if  he  persists.  He  has  told  the 
men  to  take  a  shot  at  the  rascal  on  sight. 
Tompkins  does  n't  love  him,  you  know." 

Penelope  went  her  way  laughing  and  — 
forgot  the  danger  that  threatened  Randolph 
Shaw. 

The  next  morning,  quite  early,  she  was 
off  for  a  canter.  Some  magnetic  force  drew 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    51 

her  toward  that  obliterated  line  in  the  road 
way.  Almost  as  she  came  up  to  it  and 
stopped,  Randolph  Shaw  rode  down  the 
hillside  through  the  trees  and  drew  rein 
directly  opposite,  the  noses  of  their  horses 
almost  touching.  With  a  smile  he  gave  the 
military  salute  even  as  she  gasped  in  self- 
conscious  dismay. 

"On  duty,  Miss  Drake.  No  trepass- 
ing,"  he  said.  There  was  a  glad  ring  in 
his  voice.  "  Please  don't  run  away.  You  're 
on  the  safe  side." 

"  I  'm  not  going  to  run,"  she  said,  her 
cheek  flushing.  "How  do  you  know  where 
the  line  is  ?  It  has  been  destroyed  by  the 
ravages  of  time." 

<c  Yes.  It  has  seemed  a  year.  This  thing 
of  acting  sentinel  so  religiously  is  a  bit  wear 
ing."  His  great,  friendly  dog  came  across 
the  line,  however,  and  looked  bravely  up 
into  the  enemy's  face,  wagging  his  tail. 
"  Traitor !  Come  back,  Bonaparte,"  cried 
his  master. 

"  What  a  beautiful  dog,"  she  cried,  sin 
cere  admiration  in  her  eyes.  "  I  love  a 
big  dog.  He  is  your  best  friend,  I  '11 
wager." 

" (  Love  me,  love  my  dog,'  is  my  motto." 


t-v 

K? 


COWARDICE  COURT 

The  conversation  was  not  prolonged. 
Penelope  began  to  find  herself  on  rather 
friendly  terms  with  the  enemy.  Confusion 
came  over  her  when  she  remembered  that 
she  was  behaving  in  a  most  unmaidenly 
manner.  Doubtless  that  was  why  she 
brought  the  meeting  to  a  close  by  gallop 
ing  away. 

The  ways  of  fortune  are  strange,  look  at 
them  from  any  point  of  view.  Surprising 
as  it  may  seem,  a  like  encounter  happened 
on  the  following  day  and  —  aye,  on  the  day 
after  and  every  day  for  a  week  or  more. 
Occasions  there  were  when  Penelope  was 
compelled  to  equivocate  shamefully  in  order 
to  escape  the  companionship  of  the  duke, 
the  count,  or  others  of  their  ilk.  Once, 
when  the  guardian  of  the  road  was  late  at 
his  post,  she  rode  far  into  the  enemy's  coun 
try,  actually  thrilled  by  the  joy  of  adventure. 
When  he  appeared  far  down  the  road,  she 
turned  and  fled  with  all  the  sensations  of  a 
culprit.  And  he  thundered  after  her  with 
vindictiveness  that  deserved  better  results. 
Across  the  line  she  drew  rein  and  faced 
him  defiantly,  her  hair  blown  awry,  her 
cheeks  red,  her  eyes  sparkling. 

"  No  trespass  !  "  she  cried,  holding  up  her 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    53 

gloved  hand.  He  stopped  short,  for  that 
was  one  of  the  terms  of  truce. 

The  next  day  he  again  was  missing,  but 
she  was  not  to  be  caught  by  his  stratagem. 
Instead  of  venturing  into  the  trap  he  had 
prepared  for  her,  she  remained  on  her  side 
of  the  line,  smiling  at  the  thought  of  him 
in  hiding  far  up  the  road.  If  any  one  had 
suggested  to  her  that  she  was  developing  too 
great  an  interest  in  this  stalwart  gentleman, 
she  would  have  laughed  him  to  scorn.  It 
had  not  entered  her  mind  to  question  her 
self  as  to  the  pleasure  she  found  in  being 
near  him.  She  was  founding  her  actions  on 
the  basis  that  he  was  a  real  man  and  that  the 
little  comedy  of  adventure  was  quite  worth 
while. 

At  length  an  impatient  line  appeared  on 
her  fair  brow,  a  resentful  gleam  in  her  eyes. 
His  remissness  was  an  impertinence  !  It  was 
the  last  time  she  would  come  —  but  a  sudden 
thought  struck  her  like  a  blow.  She  turned 
white  and  red  by  turns.  Had  he  tired  of 
the  sport?  Had  the  novelty  worn  off? 
Was  he  laughing  at  her  for  a  silly  co 
quette  ?  The  riding  crop  came  down 
sharply  upon  her  horse's  flank  and  a  very 
deeply  agitated  young  woman  galloped  off 


54 


COWARDICE  COURT 


toward  Bazelhurst  Villa,  hurrying  as  though 
afraid  he  might  catch  sight  of  her  in  flight. 

A  quarter  of  a  mile  brought  a  change  in 
her  emotions.  British  stubbornness  arose 
to  combat  an  utter  rout.  After  all,  why 
should  she  run  away  from  him  ?  With 
whimsical  bravado,  she  turned  off  suddenly 
into  the  trail  that  led  to  the  river,  her  colour 
deepening  with  the  consciousness  that,  after 
all,  she  was  vaguely  hoping  she  might  see 
him  somewhere  before  the  morning  passed. 
Through  the  leafy  pathway  she  rode  at  a 
snail's  pace,  brushing  the  low-hanging  leaves 
and  twigs  from  about  her  head  with  some 
thing  akin  to  petulance.  As  she  neared  the 
river  the  neighing  of  a  horse  hard  by  caused 
her  to  sit  erect  with  burning  ears.  Then  she 
relapsed  into  a  smile,  remembering  that  it 
might  have  come  from  the  game  warden's 
horse.  A  moment  later  her  searching  eyes 
caught  sight  of  Shaw's  horse  tied  to  a 
sapling  and  on  Bazelhurst  ground,  many 
hundred  feet  from  his  own  domain.  She 
drew  rein  sharply  and  looked  about  in  con 
siderable  trepidation.  Off  to  the  right  lay 
the  log  that  divided  the  lands,  but  nowhere 
along  the  bank  of  the  river  could  she  see 
the  trespasser.  Carefully  she  resumed  her 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES     55 

way,  ever  on  the  lookout,  puzzled  not  a  little 
by  the  unusual  state  of  affairs. 

Near  the  river  trail  she  came  upon  the 
man,  but  he  paid  no  heed  to  her  approach. 
He  sat  with  his  face  in  his  hands  and  —  she 
could  not  believe  her  eyes  and  ears  —  he 
was  sobbing  bitterly.  For  an  instant  her 
lips  curled  in  the  smile  of  scornful  triumph 
and  then  something  like  disgust  came  over 
her.  There  was  mockery  in  her  voice  as 
she  called  out  to  him. 

"Have  you  stubbed  your  toe,  little  boy?" 

He  looked  up,  dazed.  Then  he  arose, 
turning  his  back  while  he  dashed  his  hand 
across  his  eyes.  When  he  glanced  back  at 
her  he  saw  that  she  was  smiling.  But  she 
also  saw  something  in  his  face  that  drove 
the  smile  away.  Absolute  rage  gleamed  in 
his  eyes. 

"  So  it  is  real  war,"  he  said  hoarsely,  his 
face  quivering.  "  Your  pitiful  cowards  want 
it  to  be  real,  do  they  ?  Well,  that  's  what 
it  shall  be,  hang  them  !  They  shall  have 
all  they  want  of  it !  Look  !  This  is  their 
way  of  righting,  is  it  ?  Look  !  " 

He  pointed  to  his  feet.  Her  bewildered 
eyes  saw  that  his  hand  was  bloody  and  a 
deathly  sickness  came  over  her.  He  was 


COWARDICE  COURT 

pointing  to  the  outstretched,  inanimate  form 
of  the  dog  that  had  been  his  friend  and 
comrade.  She  knew  that  the  beast  was 
dead  and  she  knew  that  her  brother's  threat 
had  not  been  an  idle  one.  A  great  wave  of 
pity  and  horror  swept  over  her.  Moisture 
sprang  to  her  eyes  on  the  moment. 

"  He  —  he  is  dead  ?  "  she  exclaimed. 

"  Yes  —  and  killed  by  some  cowardly 
brute  whose  neck  I  'd  like  to  wring.  That 
dog  —  my  Bonaparte  —  who  knew  no  feud, 
who  did  no  wrong !  Your  brother  wants 
war,  does  he  ?  Well,  I  '11  give  him  all  —  " 

"  But  my  brother  could  not  have  done  a 
thing  like  this,"  she  cried,  slipping  from  her 
saddle  and  advancing  toward  him  quickly. 
"Oh,  no,  no  !  Not  this  !  He  is  not  that 
sort,  I  know.  It  must  have  been  an  acci 
dent  and —  " 

"  Accident !  Don't  come  near  me  !  I 
mean  it.  God,  my  heart  is  too  full  of  ven 
geance.  Accident?  Is  this  blood  on  my 
arm  accidental  ?  Bah  !  It  was  a  deliberate 
attempt  to  murder  me  !  " 

"  You  ?     You,  too  ?  "  she  gasped,  reeling. 

"Yes  —  they've  winged  me,  too.  Oh, 
God,  if  I  only  had  been  armed.  There 
would  have  been  a  killing  ! " 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES 


"  Let  me  see  —  let  me  help  you  !  "  she 
cried,  coming  up  to  his  side,  white-faced 
and  terrified.  "  I  won't  stay  away  !  You 
are  hurt.  Please  !  Please  !  I  am  not  your 
enemy." 

For  a  long  minute  he  held  back,  savagely 
resentful,  glowering  upon  her,  then  his  face 
softened  and  his  hand  went  out  to  clasp 
hers. 

"  I  knew  you  had  nothing  to  do  with  it. 
Forgive  me  —  forgive  my  rudeness.  Don't 
be  alarmed  about  me.  Two  or  three  scat 
tered  shot  struck  me  in  the  arm.  The 
fellow's  aim  was  bad  when  it  came  to  me. 
But  he  —  he  got  the  dog  !  Poor  old  Bona 
parte  !  It's  as  if  he  were  a  —  a  brother, 
Miss  Drake.  I  loved  him  and  he  loved 
me." 

"  You  must  let  me  see  your  arm.  I  will 
not  take  no  for  an  answer.  It  must  need 
attention  —  " 

"  Believe  me,  it  is  nothing.  I  have  tied 
my  handkerchief  about  it  —  two  little  shot, 
that's  all.  The  first  charge  riddled  the  dog. 
But  I  forget.  I  am  still  on  your  sister's 
land.  At  any  minute  I  may  be  shot  from 
behind  some  tree.  I  —  I  could  n't  help 
crying,  Miss  Drake.  It  was  cruel  —  fiend- 


fc> 


COWARDICE  COURT 

ish  !  Now,  if  you  '11  permit  me,  I  '11  take 
my  dead  off  of  your  land." 

"  Stop !  I  must  know  about  it.  Tell 
me;  how  did  it  happen?" 

"I  can't  talk  about  it  to  you." 

"Why  not?  Do  you  think  I  condone 
this  outrage  ?  Do  you  think  I  can  support 
such  means  of  warfare  ?  You  do  not  know 
me,  Mr.  Shaw  ;  you  do  not  know  an  Eng 
lishwoman's  love  of  fairness." 

"  By  Jove,  do  you  mean  it  ?  "  his  eyes 
lighted  up.  "  But,  after  all,  you  belong  to 
the  other  camp,"  he  added  dejectedly.  "  I 
—  I  wish  to  heaven,  Miss  Drake,  you  were 
not  one  of  them  !  " 

"  My  brother  —  Cecil  would  not  have 
permitted  this,"  she  tried  to  apologize,  re 
membering  with  a  cold  heart  that  Lord 
Bazelhurst  had  given  the  very  instructions 
of  which  this  was  the  result. 

"  We  can't  discuss  it,  Miss  Drake.  Some 
one  from  your  side  of  the  line  killed  my 
dog  and  then  fired  at  me.  I'll  admit  I  was 
trespassing,  but  not  until  the  dog  was  shot. 
He  was  on  Lady  Bazelhurst's  land  when  he 
was  shot.  It  was  not  until  after  that  that 
I  trespassed,  if  you  are  pleased  to  call  it 
such.  But  I  was  unarmed;  hang  the  luck!  " 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES     59 

The  way  he  said  it  conveyed  much  to  her 
understanding. 

"Tell  me,  please." 

"  I  Ve  had  murder  in  my  heart  for  half  an 
hour,  Miss  Drake.  Somehow  you  soothe 
me."  He  sat  down  on  the  log  again  and 
leaned  his  head  upon  his  hand.  With  his 
eyes  upon  the  dead  dog  he  went  on,  con 
trolling  his  anger  with  an  effort :  "  I  rode 
down  the  river  road  this  morning  for  a 
change,  intending  to  go  up  later  on  to  our 
trysting  place  through  the  wood."  She 
heard  him  call  it  a  trysting  place  without  a 
thought  of  resentment  or  shame.  "  When 
I  came  to  the  log  there  I  stopped,  but 
Bonaparte,  lawless  old  chap,  kept  on.  I 
paid  no  attention  to  him,  for  I  was  thinking 
of —  of  something  else.  He  had  raced 
around  in  the  forbidden  underbrush  for 
some  time  before  I  heard  the  report  of 
a  gun  near  at  hand.  The  dog  actually 
screamed  like  a  human  being.  I  saw  him 
leap  up  from  the  ground  and  then  roll  over. 
Of  course,  I  — well,  I  trespassed.  Without 
thinking  of  my  own  safety  I  flew  to  where 
the  dog  was  lying.  He  looked  up  into  my 
face  and  whined  just  as  he  died.  I  don't 
remember  how  I  got  off  the  horse.  The 


.0? 


6o 


COWARDICE  COURT 


next  I  knew  I  was  rushing  blindly  into  the 
brush  toward  a  place  where  I  saw  smoke, 
cursing  like  a  fiend.  Then  came  the  second 
shot  and  the  stinging  in  my  arm.  It  brought 
me  to  my  senses.  I  stopped  and  a  moment 
later  I  saw  a  man  running  down  along  the 
bank  of  the  stream.  I  —  oh,  well,  there 
is  n't  any  more  to  tell.  I  don't  know 
who  fired  the  shots.  I  could  n't  see  his 
face." 

"  It  was  Tompkins,"  she  cried.  "  I  know 
it  was.  He  had  his  orders  — "  but  she 
checked  herself  in  confusion. 

"  His  orders  ?  Do  you  mean  to  say  — 
Miss  Drake,  did  your  brother  instruct  him 
to  kill  me  ? "  She  quailed  beneath  his 
look. 

"I  —  I  can't  say  anything  more  about  it, 
Mr.  Shaw,"  she  murmured,  so  piteously  that 
he  was  touched.  For  a  seemingly  intermin 
able  length  of  time  his  hard  eyes  looked  into 
hers  and  then  they  softened. 

"I  understand,"  he  said  simply.  "You 
cannot  talk  about  it.  I  '11  not  ask  any 
questions." 

"  My  brother  is  weak  in  her  hands,"  she 
managed  to  say  in  extenuation. 

"  After  all,  it  is  n't  a  pleasant  subject.     If 


H 


\ 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    61 

you  don't  mind,  we'll  let  it  drop  —  that  is, 
between  you  and  me,  Miss  Drake.  I  hope 
the  war  won't  break  off  our  —  " 

"  Don't  suggest  it,  please  !  I  'd  rather 
you  would  n't.  We  are  friends,  after  all. 
I  thought  it  was  playing  at  war  —  and  I 
can't  tell  you  how  shocked  I  am." 

"  Poor  old  Bonaparte !  "  was  all  he  said  in 
reply.  She  stooped  and  laid  her  hand  on 
the  fast-chilling  coat  of  the  dog.  There  were 
tears  in  her  eyes  as  she  arose  and  turned 
away,  moving  toward  her  horse.  Shaw 
deliberately  lifted  the  dead  animal  into  his 
arms  and  strode  off  toward  his  own  land. 
She  followed  after  a  moment  of  indecision, 
leading  the  horse.  Across  the  line  he  went 
and  up  the  side  of  the  knoll  to  his  right. 
At  the  foot  of  a  great  tree  he  tenderly 
deposited  his  burden.  Then  he  turned  to 
find  her  almost  beside  him. 

"  You  won't  mind  my  coming  over  here, 
will  you  ?  "  she  asked  softly.  He  reached 
out  and  clasped  her  hand,  thoughtlessly,  with 
his  blood-covered  fingers.  It  was  not  until 
long  afterward  that  she  discovered  his  blood 
upon  the  hand  from  which  she  had  drawn 
her  riding  glove. 

"  Tou  are  always  welcome,"  he  said.     "  I 


62 


COWARDICE  COURT 


am  going  to  bury  him  here  this  afternoon. 
No,  please  don't  come.  I  '11  bring  the  men 
down  to  help  me.  I  suppose  they  think 
I  'm  a  coward  and  a  bounder  over  at  your 
place.  Do  you  remember  the  challenge  you 
gave  me  yesterday  ?  You  dared  me  to  come 
over  the  line  as  far  into  Bazelhurst  land  as 
you  had  come  into  mine.  Well,  I  dared 
last  night." 

"  You  dared  ?     You  came  ?  " 

"Yes,  and  I  went  farther  than  you  have 
gone,  because  I  thought  it  was  play,  comedy, 
fun.  I  even  sat  upon  your  gallery,  just 
outside  the  billiard-room  —  and  smoked 
two  cigarettes.  You  '11  find  the  stubs  on  the 
porch  railing  if  her  ladyship's  servants  are 
not  too  exemplary."  She  was  looking  at 
him  in  wide-eyed  unbelief.  "  I  was  there 
when  you  came  out  on  the  lawn  with  the 
Frenchman." 

"Did  you  hear  what  he  was — what  we 
were  saying  ? "  she  asked,  nervously  and 
going  pale. 

"  No.  I  was  not  eavesdropping.  Be 
sides,  you  returned  to  the  house  very 
abruptly,  if  you  remember." 

"  Yes,  I  remember,"  she  said,  a  sigh  of 
relief  accompanying  the  warm  glow  that  came 


H 


IN  WHICH  A  DOG  TRESPASSES    63 

to  her  cheek.  "  But  were  you  not  afraid  of 
being  discovered  ?  How  imprudent  of 
you  !  " 

"It  was  a  bit  risky,  but  I  rather  enjoyed 
it.  The  count  spoke  to  me  as  I  left  the 
place.  It  was  dark  and  he  mistook  me  for 
one  of  your  party.  I  could  n't  wait  to  see 
if  you  returned  to  renew  the  tete-a-tete  —  " 

"  I  did  not  return,"  she  said.  It  was  his 
turn  to  be  relieved. 


IN    WHICH    THE    TRUTH    TRESPASSES 


.L/ORD  and  Lady  Bazelhurst,  with  the 
more  energetic  members  of  their  party, 
spent  the  day  in  a  so-called  hunting  ex 
cursion  to  the  hills  south  of  the  Villa. 
Toward  nightfall  they  returned  success 
fully  empty-handed  and  rapacious  for  bridge. 
Penelope,  full  of  smouldering  anger,  had 
spent  the  afternoon  in  her  room,  disdaining 
every  call  of  sociability.  She  had  awakened 
to  the  truth  of  the  situation  in  so  far  as  she 
was  concerned.  She  was  at  least  seeing 
things  from  Shaw's  point  of  view.  Her 
resentment  was  not  against  the  policy  of 
her  brother  but  the  overbearing,  petulant 
tyranny  of  her  American  sister-in-law.  From 
the  beginning  she  had  disliked  Evelyn  ;  now 
she  despised  her.  With  the  loyal  simplicity 
of  a  sister  she  absolved  Cecil  of  all  real 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    65 

blame  in  the  outrage  of  the  morning,  attrib 
uting  everything  to  the  cruelty  and  envy 
of  the  despot  who  held  the  purse-strings 
from  which  dangled  the  pliable  fortunes  of 
Bazelhurst.  The  Bazelhursts,  one  and  all 
—  ancestors  thrown  in  —  swung  back  and 
forth  on  the  pendulum  of  her  capriciousness. 
Penelope,  poor  as  a  church  mouse,  was 
almost  wholly  dependent  upon  her  brother, 
who  in  turn  owed  his  present  affluence  to 
the  more  or  less  luckless  movement  of  the 
matrimonial  market.  The  girl  had  a  small, 
inadequate  income  —  so  small  it  was  almost 
worth  jesting  about. 

Here  was  Penelope,  twenty-two,  beautiful, 
proud,  fair-minded,  and  healthy,  surveying 
herself  for  the  first  time  from  a  new  and  an 
entirely  different  point  of  view.  She  was 
not  pleased  with  the  picture.  She  began 
to  loathe  herself  more  than  she  pitied  her 
brother.  Something  like  a  smile  came  into 
her  clouded  face  as  she  speculated  on  Ran 
dolph  Shaw's  method  of  handling  Evelyn 
Banks  had  she  fallen  to  him  as  a  wife.  The 
quiet  power  in  that  man's  face  signified  the 
presence  of  a  manhood  that  —  ah,  and  just 
here  it  occurred  to  her  that  Lady  Bazelhurst 
felt  the  force  of  that  power  even  though  she 


66 


COWARDICE  COURT 


never  had  seen  the  man.  She  hated  him 
because  he  was  strong  enough  to  oppose  her, 
to  ignore  her,  to  laugh  at  her  impotence. 

The  smouldering  anger  and  a  growing 
sense  of  fairness  combined  at  length  in  the 
determination  to  take  her  brother  and  his 
wife  to  task  for  the  morning's  outrage,  let 
the  consequences  be  what  they  might.  When 
she  joined  the  people  downstairs  before  din 
ner,  there  was  a  red  spot  in  each  cheek  and 
a  steady  look  in  her  eyes  that  caused  the 
duke  to  neglect  woefully  the  conversation 
he  was  carrying  on  with  Mrs.  Odwell. 

Dinner  was  delayed  for  nearly  half  an 
hour  while  four  of  the  guests  finished  their 
"  rubber."  Penelope  observed  that  the 
party  displayed  varying  emotions.  It  after 
wards  transpired  that  the  hunters  had  spent 
most  of  the  afternoon  in  her  ladyship's  dis 
tant  lodge  playing  bridge  for  rather  high 
stakes.  Little  Miss  Folsom  was  pitifully 
unresponsive  to  the  mirth  of  Mr.  Odwell. 
She  could  ill  afford  to  lose  six  hundred 
dollars.  Lady  Bazelhurst  was  in  a  frightful 
mood.  Her  guests  had  so  far  forgotten 
themselves  as  to  win  more  than  a  thousand 
dollars  of  the  Banks  legacy  and  she  was  not 
a  cheerful  loser,  —  especially  as  his  lordship 


In  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    67 

had  dropped  an  additional  five  hundred. 
The  winners  were  riotously  happy.  They 
had  found  the  sport  glorious.  An  observer, 
given  to  deductions,  might  have  noticed  that 
half  of  the  diners  were  immoderately  hila 
rious,  the  other  half  studiously  polite. 

Lord  Bazelhurst  wore  a  hunted  look  and 
drank  more  than  one  or  two  highballs. 
From  time  to  time  he  cast  furtive  glances  at 
his  wife.  He  laughed  frequently  at  the 
wrong  time  and  mirthlessly. 

"He's  got  something  on  his  mind," 
whispered  Odwell  in  comment. 

"  Yes ;  he  always  laughs  when  there  is 
anything  on  his  mind,"  replied  Mrs.  De 
Peyton.  "  That 's  the  way  he  gets  it 
off." 

After  dinner  no  one  proposed  cards.  The 
party  edged  off  into  twos  and  threes  and 
explained  how  luck  had  been  with  or  against 
them.  Penelope,  who  could  not  afford  to 
play  for  stakes,  and  had  the  courage  to  say  fllCy] 
so,  sat  back  and  listened  to  the  conversation 
of  her  brother  and  the  group  around  him. 
The  duke  was  holding  forth  on  the  superi 
ority  of  the  Chinese  over  the  Japanese  as 
servants  and  Bazelhurst  was  loudly  defend 
ing  the  Japanese  navy. 


68 


COWARDICE  COURT 


"  Hang  it  all,  Barminster,  the  Japs  could 
eat  'em  up,"  he  proclaimed.  "  Could  n't 
they  ?  "  to  the  crowd. 

"  I  'm  talking  about  servants,  Cecil,"  ob 
served  the  duke. 

"  And  shoot  ?  Why,  they  're  the  greatest 
gunners  in  the  world.  By  Jove,  I  read 
somewhere  the  other  day  that  they  had  hit 
what  they  shot  at  three  million  times  out  of 
—  or,  let  me  see,  was  it  the  Prussians  who 
fired  three  million  rounds  and  — " 

"  Oh,  let 's  change  the  subject,"  said  the 
duke  in  disgust.  "  What 's  become  of 
that  Shaw  fellow  ? "  Penelope  started  and 
flushed,  much  to  her  chagrin.  At  the  sound 
of  Shaw's  name  Lady  Bazelhurst,  who  was 
passing  with  the  count,  stopped  so  abruptly 
that  her  companion  took  half  a  dozen  paces 
without  her. 

"  Shaw  ?  By  Jove,  do  you  know,  I  'd 
completely  forgotten  that  fellow,"  exclaimed 
Cecil. 

"  I  thought  you  were  going  to  shoot  him, 
or  shoot  at  him,  or  something  like  that. 
Can't  you  get  him  in  range  ?  " 

"  Oh,  I  was  n't  really  in  earnest  about  that, 
Barminster.  You  know  we  could  n't  shoot 
at  a  fellow  for  such  a  thing  — " 


H 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    69 

"  Nonsense,  Cecil/'  said  his  wife.  "  You 
shoot  poachers  in  England." 

"  But  this  fellow  is  n't  a  poacher.  He  's 
a  —  a  gentleman,  I  daresay  —  in  some  re 
spects —  not  all,  of  course,  my  dear,  but — " 

"  Gentleman  ?  Ridiculous  !  "  scoffed  his 
wife. 

cc  I  —  yes,  quite  right  —  a  ridiculous  gen 
tleman,  of  course.  Ha,  ha!  Isn't  he, 
Barminster  ?  But  with  all  that,  you  know, 
I  couldn't  have  Tompkins  shoot  him. 
He  asked  me  the  other  day  if  he  should 
take  a  shot  at  Shaw's  legs,  and  I  told 
him  not  to  do  anything  so  absurd."  Penel 
ope's  heart  swelled  with  relief,  and  for 
the  first  time  that  evening  she  looked  upon 
her  brother  with  something  like  sisterly 
regard. 

"  It  did  n't  matter,  however,"  said  Lady 
Evelyn  sharply.  "  I  gave  him  instructions 
yesterday  to  shoot  any  trespasser  from  that 
side  of  the  line.  I  can't  see  that  we  owe 
Mr.  Shaw  any  especial  consideration.  He 
has  insulted  and  ignored  me  at  every  oppor 
tunity.  Why  should  he  be  permitted  to 
trespass  more  than  any  other  common  law 
breaker?  If  he  courts  a  charge  of  birdshot 
he  should  not  expect  to  escape  scot  free. 


yo  COWARDICE  COURT 

Birdshot  would  n't  kill  a  man,  you  know, 
but  it  would  —  " 

But  Penelope  could  restrain  herself  no 
longer.  The  heartlessness  of  her  sister-in- 
law  overcame  her  prudence,  and  she  inter 
rupted  the  scornful  mistress  of  the  house, 
her  eyes  blazing,  but  her  voice  under  perfect 
control.  Her  tall  young  figure  was  tense, 
and  her  ringers  clasped  the  back  of  Miss 
Folsom's  chair  rather  rigidly. 

"  I  suppose  you  know  what  happened 
this  morning,"  she  said,  with  such  apparent 
restraint  that  every  one  looked  at  her 
expectantly. 

"  Do  you  mean  in  connection  with  Mr.  — 
with  Jack-the-Giant-Killer  ?  "  asked  her  lady 
ship,  her  eyes  brightening. 

"Some  one  of  your  servants  shot  him  this 
morning,"  said  Penelope  with  great  distinct 
ness.  There  was  breathless  silence  in  the 
room. 

"  Shot  him  ?  "  gasped  Lord  Bazelhurst, 
his  thin  red  face  going  very  white. 

"  Not  —  not  fatally  ?  "  exclaimed  Evelyn, 
aghast  in  spite  of  herself. 

"  No.  The  instructions  were  carried  out. 
His  wound  in  the  arm  is  trifling.  But  the 
coward  was  not  so  generous  when  it  came  to 


H 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    71 

the  life  of  his  innocent,  harmless  dog.  He 
killed  the  poor  thing.  Evelyn,  it's  —  it's 
like  murder." 

"  Oh,"  cried  her  ladyship,  relieved.  "  He 
killed  the  dog.  I  daresay  Mr.  Shaw  has 
come  to  realize  at  last  that  we  are  earnest 
in  this.  Of  course  I  am  glad  that  the  man 
is  not  badly  hurt.  Still,  a  few  shot  in  the 
arm  will  hardly  keep  him  in  bounds.  His 
legs  were  intended,"  she  laughed  lightly. 
"  What  miserable  aim  Tompkins  must 
take." 

"  He  's  a  bit  off  in  his  physiology,  my 
dear,"  said  Cecil,  with  a  nervous  attempt  at 
humour.  He  did  not  like  the  expression  in 
his  sister's  face.  Somehow,  he  was  ashamed. 

"  Oh,  it's  bad  enough,"  said  Penelope. 
cf  It  was  his  left  arm  —  the  upper  arm,  too. 
I  think  the  aim  was  rather  good." 

"  Pray,  how  do  you  know  all  of  this,  Pe 
nelope  ?  "  asked  her  ladyship,  lifting  her  eye 
brows.  "  I  've  heard  that  you  see  Mr.  Shaw 
occasionally,  but  you  can't  be  his  physician, 
I  'm  sure."' 

Penelope  flushed  to  the  roots  of  her  hair, 
but  suppressed  the  retort  which  would  have 
been  in  keeping  with  the  provocation. 

"  Oh,  dear,  no  !  "  she  replied.     "  I'm  too 


72  COWARDICE  COURT 

soft-hearted  to  be  a  physician.  I  saw  Mr. 
Shaw  just  after  the  —  ah  —  the  incident." 

"You  shaw  Saw  —  I  mean  you  saw  Shaw  ?  " 
gasped  Bazelhurst. 

"  She  sees  him  frequently,  Cecil.  It  was 
not  at  all  unusual  that  she  should  have 
seen  him  to-day.  I  daresay  he  waited  to 
show  you  his  wound  before  going  to  a 
surgeon." 

Penelope  could  not  resist  the  temptation 
to  invent  a  story  befitting  the  moment. 
Assuming  a  look  of  concern,  she  turned  to 
her  brother  and  said  :  "  He  is  coming  to  see 
you  about  it  to-morrow,  and  he  is  coming 
armed  to  the  teeth,  attended  by  a  large  party 
of  friends.  Mr.  Shaw  says  he  will  have 
satisfaction  for  the  death  of  that  dog  if  he 
has  to  shoot  everybody  on  the  place." 

"Good  Lord!"  cried  the  duke.  There 
was  instant  excitement.  "  I  believe  the 
wretch  will  do  it,  too." 

"Oh,  I  say,  Bazelhurst,  settle  with  him 
for  the  dog,"  said  De  Peyton  nervously. 
He  looked  at  his  watch  and  then  at  his  wife. 
The  entire  party  now  was  listening  to  the 
principal  speakers. 

"  Nonsense  !  "  exclaimed  Lady  Evelyn. 
"  He  won't  come.  It's  all  bluster.  Don't 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES 

let    it    frighten    you,    Cecil.       I    know 
manner  of  man." 

"  I  wish  you  could  have  seen  him  this 
morning,"  murmured  Penelope,  thoroughly 
enjoying  the  unexpected  situation.  Her 
conscience  was  not  troubled  by  the  prevari 
cation. 

"  By  Jove,  I  think  it  would  be  wise  to 
send  over  and  find  out  what  he  valued  the 
brute  at,"  said  Cecil,  mopping  his  brow. 

"Good.  We'll  send  Penelope  to  act  as 
ambassador,"  said  her  ladyship.  "  She  seems 
to  be  on  friendly  terms  with  the  enemy." 

"  To  act  as  ambassador  from  Cowardice 
Court  ? "  questioned  Penelope,  loftily,  yet 
with  cutting  significance.  "  No,  I  thank 
you.  I  decline  the  honour.  Besides,"  with 
a  reflective  frown,  "  I  don't  believe  it  is 
diplomacy  he  's  after." 

"  I  say  what  the  deuce  do  you  suppose 
the  confounded  savage  has  in  mind  ?  "  ex 
claimed  the  duke.  "  I  've  heard  of  the  way 
these  cowboys  settle  their  affairs.  You  don't 
imagine  —  "  and  he  paused  significantly. 

"  It  looks  like  it 's  going  to  be  a  da — 
rather  disagreeable  affair,"  said  De  Peyton 
sourly. 

"Good  heavens,  what  are  we  to  do  if  he 


74 


COWARDICE   COURT 


comes  here  with  a  lot  of  desperadoes  and 
begins  to  shoot?"  cried  Mrs.  Odwell,  genu 
inely  alarmed.  "  I  Ve  read  so  much  of  these 
awful  mountain  feuds." 

"  Don't  be  alarmed.  Lord  Bazelhurst 
will  attend  to  the  gentleman,"  said  Lady 
Evelyn  blandly.  His  lordship's  monocle 
clattered  down  and  the  ice  rattled  sharply  in 
his  glass. 

"To  —  to  be  sure,"  he  agreed.  "Don't 
be  in  the  least  worried.  I  '11  attend  to  the 
upstart.  What  time  's  he  coming,  Pen  ?  " 

A  door  banged  noisily  near  by,  and  every 
one  jumped  as  though  a  gun  had  been  fired. 
While  the  "  ohs  "  were  still  struggling  from 
their  lips,  H odder,  the  butler,  came  into 
the  room,  doing  his  best  to  retain  his  com 
posure  under  what  seemed  to  be  trying 
circumstances. 

"  What  is  it,  Hodder  ?  "  demanded  her 
ladyship. 

"  The  cook,  your  ladyship.  She's  fallen 
downstairs  and  broken  her  leg,"  announced 
Hodder.  He  did  not  betray  it,  but  he  must 
have  been  tremendously  surprised  by  the 
.sigh  of  relief  that  went  up  on  all  sides. 
Lord  Bazelhurst  went  so  far  as  to  laugh. 

"  Ha,  ha  !  is  that  all  ?  " 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    75 

"Oh,  dear,  I'm  so  glad!"  cried  Miss 
Folsom,  impulsively.  "  I  was  frightened 
half  to  death.  It  might  have  been  Mr.  — " 

"  Don't  be  silly,  Rose,"  said  Lady  Bazel- 
hurst.  "  Where  is  she,  Hodder  ?  " 

"  In  the  laundry,  your  ladyship.  There 
are  two  fractures." 

"  By  Jove,  two  legs  instead  of  one,  then  — 
worse  than  I  thought,"  cried  Bazelhurst, 
draining  his  glass. 

"  Send  at  once  for  a  doctor,  Hodder,  and 
take  her  to  her  room.  Is  n't  it  annoying," 
said  her  ladyship.  "  It 's  so  difficult  to  keep 
a  cook  in  the  mountains." 

"  Don't  see  how  she  can  get  away  without 
legs,"  observed  De  Peyton. 

"  I  '11  come  with  you,  Hodder.  Perhaps 
I  can  do  something  for  her,"  said  Penelope, 
following  the  butler  from  the  room. 

"  Don't  take  too  many  patients  on  your 
hands,  my  dear,"  called  the  mistress,  with  a 
shrill  laugh. 

"  Yes  ;  remember  to-morrow,"  added  the 
duke.  Then,  suddenly  :  "  I  believe  I  '11 
lend  a  hand."  He  hurried  after  Penelope, 
rather  actively  for  him. 

Lord  Bazelhurst  visited  his  wife's  room 
later  in  the  night,  called  there  by  a  more  or 


COURT 

less  peremptory  summons.  Cecil  had  been 
taking  time  by  the  forelock  in  anticipation 
of  Shaw's  descent  in  the  morning  and  was 
inclined  to  jocundity. 

"  Cecil,  what  do  you  think  of  Penelope's 
attitude  toward  Mr.  Shaw  ? "  she  asked, 
turning  away  from  the  window  which  looked 
out  over  the  night  in  the  direction  of  Shaw's 
place. 

"  I  did  n't  know  she  had  an  attitude,"  re 
plied  he,  trying  to  focus  his  wavering  gaze 
upon  her. 

"She  meets  him  clandestinely  and  she 
supports  him  openly.  Is  n't  that  an  atti 
tude,  or  are  you  too  drunk  to  see  it? " 

"My  dear,  remember  you  are  speaking 
of  my  sister,"  he  said  with  fine  dignity  but 
little  discrimination.  "  Besides,  I  am  not 
too  drunk.  I  do  see  it.  It 's  a  demmed 
annoying  attitude.  She's  a  traitor, un'stand 
me  ?  A  traito-tor.  I  intend  to  speak  to 
her  about  it." 

"  It  is  better  that  you  should  do  it,"  said 
his  wife.  "  I  am  afraid  I  could  not  control 
my  temper." 

"  Penelope  's  a  disgrace  —  a  nabsolute  dis 
grace.  How  many  legs  did  Hodder  say 
she'd  — she'd  broken?" 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    77 

"  Oh,  you  're  disgusting  !  "  cried  Lady 
Evelyn.  "  Go  to  bed  !  I  thought  I  could 
talk  to  you  to-night,  but  I  can't.  You 
scarcely  can  stand  up." 

"  Now,  Evelyn,  you  do  me  injustice.  I  'm 
only  holding  to  this  chair  to  keep  it  from 
moving  'round  the  room.  See  that  ?  Course 
I  c'n  stan'  up,"  he  cried,  triumphantly. 

"  I  am  utterly  disgusted  with  you.  Oh, 
for  a  man  !  A  man  with  real  blood  in  his 
veins,  a  man  who  could  do  something  besides 
eat  and  drink  at  my  cost.  I  pay  your  debts, 
clothe  you,  feed  you  —  house  your  ungrate 
ful  sister  —  and  what  do  I  get  in  return  ? 


Lord  Bazelhurst's  eyes  steadied  beneath 
this  unexpected  assault,  his  legs  stiffened,  his 
shoulders  squared  themselves  in  a  pitiful  at 
tempt  at  dignity. 

"Lady  Bazelhurst,  you  —  you  —  "  and 
then  he  collapsed  into  the  chair,  bursting 
into  maudlin  tears.  She  stood  over  by  the 
dressing-table  and  looked  pitilessly  upon  the 
weak  creature  whose  hiccoughing  sobs  filled 
the  room.  Her  colour  was  high,  her  breath 
ing  heavy.  In  some  way  it  seemed  as  though 
there  was  so  much  more  she  could  have  said 
had  the  circumstances  been  different. 


78  COWARDICE  COURT 

There  came  a  knock  at  the  door,  but  she 
did  not  respond.  Then  the  door  opened 
quietly  and  Penelope  entered  the  room,  reso 
lutely,  fearlessly.  Evelyn  turned  her  eyes 
upon  the  intruder  and  stared  for  a  moment. 

"  Did  you  knock  ? "  she  asked  at  last. 

"  Yes.     You  did  not  answer." 

"  Was  n't  that  sufficient  ?  " 

"  Not  to-night,  Evelyn.  I  came  to  have 
it  out  with  you  and  Cecil.  Where  is 
he?" 

"  There ! " 

"  Asleep  ?  "  with  a  look  of  amazement. 

"  I  hope  not.  I  should  dislike  having 
to  call  the  servants  to  carry  him  to  his 
room." 

"  I  see.  Poor  old  chap  !  "  She  went 
over  and  shook  him  by  the  shoulder.  He 
sat  up  and  stared  at  her  blankly  through  his 
drenched  eyes.  Then,  as  if  the  occasion 
called  for  a  supreme  effort,  he  tried  to  rise, 
ashamed  that  his  sister  should  have  found 
him  in  his  present  condition.  cc  Don't  get 
up,  Cecil.  Wait  a  bit  and  I  '11  go  to  your 
room  with  you." 

"  What  have  you  to  say  to  me,  Penel 
ope  ? "  demanded  Evelyn,  a  green  light  in 
her  eyes. 


H 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    79 

"  I  can  wait.  I  prefer  to  have  Cecil  —  un 
derstand/*  she  said,  bitterly. 

"If  it's  about  our  affair  with  Shaw,  it 
won't  make  any  difference  whether  Cecil 
understands  or  not.  Has  your  friend  asked 
you  to  plead  for  him?  Does  he  expect  me 
to  take  him  up  on  your  account  and  have 
him  here  ?" 

"  I  was  jesting  when  I  said  he  would  come 
to-morrow,"  said  Penelope,  ignoring  the 
thrust  and  hurrying  to  her  subject.  "  I 
could  n't  go  to  sleep  to-night  if  I  neglected 
to  tell  you  what  I  think  of  the  outrage  this 
morning.  You  and  Cecil  had  no  right  to 
order  Tompkins  to  shoot  at  Mr.  Shaw.  He 
is  not  a  trespasser.  Some  one  killed  his 
dog  to-day.  When  he  pursued  the  coward, 
a  second  shot  was  fired  at  him.  He  was 
wounded.  Do  you  call  that  fair  fighting  ? 
Ambushed,  shot  from  behind  a  tree.  I 
don't  care  what  you  and  Cecil  think  about  it, 
I  consider  it  despicable.  Thank  God,  Cecil 
was  not  really  to  blame.  It  is  about  the  only 
thing  I  can  say  to  my  brother's  credit." 

Lady  Bazelhurst  was  staring  at  her  young 
sister-in-law  with  wide  eyes.  It  was  the 
first  time  in  all  her  petted,  vain  life  that 
any  one  had  called  her  to  account.  She  was, 


80 


COWARDICE  COURT 


at  first,  too  deeply  amazed  to  resent  the  sharp 
attack. 

"  Penelope  Drake ! "  was  all  she  could 
say.  Then  the  fury  in  her  soul  began  to 
search  for  an  outlet.  "  How  dare  you  ? 
How  dare  you  ?  " 

"  I  don't  mean  to  hurt  you.  I  am  only 
telling  you  that  your  way  of  treating  this 
affair  is  a  mistake.  It  can  be  rectified.  You 
don't  want  to  be  lawless ;  you  don't  under 
stand  what  a  narrow  escape  from  murder  you 
have  had.  Evelyn,  you  owe  reparation  to 
Mr.  Shaw.  He  is  —  " 

"  I  understand  why  you  take  his  side. 
You  cheapen  and  degrade  yourself  and  you 
bring  shame  upon  your  brother  and  me  by 
your  disgraceful  affair  with  this  ruffian. 
Don't  look  shocked  !  You  meet  him  se 
cretly,  I  know  —  how  much  farther  you  have 
gone  with  him  I  don't  know.  It  is  enough 
that  you  —  " 

"  Stop  !  You  shall  not  say  such  things 
to  me!" 

"  You  came  in  here  to  have  it  out  with 
me.  Well,  we  '11  have  it  out.  You  think  be 
cause  you  're  English,  and  all  that,  that  you 
are  better  than  I.  You  show  it  in  your 
every  action ;  you  turn  up  your  nose  at 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    81 

me  because  I  am  an  American.  Well,  what 
if  I  am  ?  Where  would  you  be  if  it  were 
not  for  me  ?  And  where  would  he  be  ? 
You  'd  starve  if  it  were  not  for  me.  You 
hang  to  me  like  a  leech  —  you  sponge  on 
me,  you  gorge  yourself — " 

"  That  is  enough,  Evelyn.  You  have 
said  all  that  is  necessary.  I  deserve  it,  too, 
for  meddling  in  your  affairs.  It  may  satisfy 
you  to  know  that  I  have  always  despised 
you.  Having  confessed,  I  can  only  add 
that  we  cannot  live  another  hour  under  the 
same  roof.  You  need  not  order  me  to  go. 
I  shall  do  so  of  my  own  accord  —  gladly." 
Penelope  turned  to  the  door.  She  was  as 
cold  as  ice. 

"It  is  the  first  time  you  have  ever  done 
anything  to  please  me.  You  may  go  in  the 
morning." 

"  I  shall  go  to-night !" 

"  As  you  like.  It  is  near  morning.  Where 
do  you  expect  to  go  at  this  hour  of  night?" 

"  I  am  not  afraid  of  the  night.  To 
morrow  I  shall  send  over  from  the  village 
for  my  trunks."  She  paused  near  the  door 
and  then  came  back  to  Cecil's  side.  "  Good 
bye,  Cecil.  I  '11  write.  Good-bye."  He 
looked  up  with  a  hazy  smile. 


82 


COWARDICE  COURT 


"G'night,"  he  muttered  thickly. 

Without  another  word  or  so  much  as  a 
glance  at  Lady  Bazelhurst,  Penelope  Drake 
went  swiftly  from  the  room.  The  big  hall 
clock  struck  the  half-hour  after  eleven. 
Some  one  —  a  woman — was  laughing  in 
the  billiard-room  below ;  the  click  of  the 
balls  came  to  her  ears  like  the  snapping  of 
angry  teeth.  She  did  not  hesitate  ;  it  was 
not  in  her  nature.  The  room  in  which  she 
had  found  so  much  delight  was  now  loath 
some  to  her.  With  nervous  fingers  she 
threw  the  small  things  she  most  cherished 
into  a  bag,  —  her  purse,  her  jewels,  her  little 
treasures.  Somehow  it  seemed  to  her  as  if 
she  were  hurrying  to  catch  a  night  train, 
that  was  all.  With  her  own  strong  young 
arms  she  dragged  the  two  huge  trunks  from 
the  closet.  Half  an  hour  later  they  were 
full  and  locked.  Then  she  looked  about 
with  a  dry,  mirthless  smile. 

"  I  wonder  where  I  am  to  go  ?  "  she  mur 
mured,  half  aloud.  A  momentary  feeling 
of  indecision  attacked  her.  The  click  of 
the  balls  had  ceased,  the  clock  had  struck 
twelve.  It  was  dark  and  still,  and  the  wind 
was  crying  in  the  trees. 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    83 

"  She  won't  go,"  Lady  Bazelhurst  was 
saying  to  herself,  as  she  sat,  narrow-eyed 
and  hateful,  in  her  window  looking  out  into 
the  night.  "  Life  is  too  easy  here."  The 
light  from  the  porch  lanterns  cast  a  feeble 
glow  out  beyond  the  porte-cochere  and 
down  the  drive.  As  she  stared  across  the 
circle,  the  figure  of  a  woman  suddenly  cut 
a  diametric  line  through  it,  and  lost  itself 
in  the  wall  of  blackness  that  formed  the  cir 
cumference.  Lady  Evelyn  started  and  stared 
unbelievingly  into  the  darkness,  striving  to 
penetrate  it  with  her  gaze.  "  It  was  she  — 
Penelope,"  she  cried,  coming  to  her  feet. 
"She's  really  gone  —  she  meant  it."  For 
many  minutes  she  peered  out  into  the  night, 
expecting  to  see  the  shadow  returning.  A 
touch  of  anxious  hope  possessing  her,  she 
left  the  window  and  hurried  down  the  cor 
ridor  to  Penelope's  room.  What  she  found 
there  was  most  convincing.  It  was  not  a 
trick  of  the  lanterns.  The  shadow  had  been 
real.  It  must  be  confessed  that  the  peevish 
heart  of  Lady  Bazelhurst  beat  rather  rapidly 
as  she  hastened  back  to  the  window  to  peer 
anxiously  out  into  the  sombre  park  with 
its  hooting  owls  and  chattering  night-bugs. 
The  mournful  yelp  of  a  distant  dog  floated 


f  T 

Q 


84 


COWARDICE  COURT 


across  the  black  valley.  The  watcher  shud 
dered  as  she  recalled  stories  of  panthers  that 
had  infested  the  great  hills.  A  small  feel 
ing  of  shame  and  regret  began  to  develop 
with  annoying  insistence. 

An  hour  dragged  itself  by  before  she 
arose  petulantly,  half  terrified,  half  annoyed 
in  spite  of  herself.  Her  husband  still  was 
sitting  in  the  big  chair,  his  face  in  his  hands. 
His  small,  dejected  figure  appealed  to  her 
pity  for  the  first  time  in  the  two  years  of 
their  association.  She  realized  what  her 
temper  had  compelled  her  to  say  to  him 
and  to  his  sister ;  she  saw  the  insults  that 
at  least  one  of  them  had  come  to  resent. 

"  I  hope  that  foolish  girl  will  come  back," 
she  found  herself  saying,  with  a  troubled 
look  from  the  window.  "  Where  can  the 
poor  thing  go  ?  What  will  become  of  her  ? 
What  will  everyone  say  when  this  becomes 
known  ?  "  she  cried,  with  fresh  selfishness. 
"I  —  I  should  not  have  let  her  go  like 
this." 

Even  as  she  reproached  herself,  a  light 
broke  in  upon  her  understanding;  a  thought 
whirled  into  her  brain  and  a  moment  later  a 
shrill,  angry,  hysterical  laugh  came  from  her 
lips. 


IN  WHICH  TRUTH  TRESPASSES    85 

"  She  knew  where  she  could  go  !  How 
simple  I  am.  Shaw  will  welcome  her  gladly. 
She's  with  him  by  this  time  —  his  doors 
have  opened  to  her.  The  little  wretch  ! 
And  I  've  been  trying  so  hard  to  pity  her  ! " 
She  laughed  again  so  shrilly  that  his  lord 
ship  stirred  and  then  looked  up  at  her  stupe 
fied,  uncertain. 

"  Hullo/'  he  grunted.    "  What  time  is  it  ? " 

"  Oh,  you  're  awake,  are  you  ?  "  scornfully. 

"  Certainly.  Have  I  been  dozing  ? 
What 's  there  to  laugh  at,  my  dear  ? "  he 
mumbled,  arising  very  unsteadily.  "Where's 
Pen  ?  " 

"  She  's  gone.  She  's  left  the  house,"  she 
said,  recurring  dread  and  anxiety  in  her 
voice.  A  glance  at  the  darkness  outside 
brought  back  the  growing  shudders. 

"  What  —  what  d'  ye  mean  ?"  demanded 
he,  bracing  up  with  a  splendid  effort. 

"She's  left  the  house,  that's  all.  We 
quarrelled.  I  don't  know  where  she  's  gone. 
Yes,  I  do  know.  She  's  gone  to  Shaw's  for 
the  night.  She  's  with  him.  I  saw  her  go 
ing,"  she  cried,  striving  between  fear  and 
anger. 

"You've — you  Ve  turned  her  out?" 
gasped  Lord  Bazelhurst,  numbly.  "In  the 


86 


COWARDICE  COURT 


o 


night  ?  Good  Lord,  why  —  why  did  you  let 
her  go?"  He  turned  and  rushed  toward 
the  door,  tears  springing  to  his  eyes.  He  was 
sobering  now  and  the  tears  were  wrenched 
from  his  hurt  pride.  "  How  long  ago  ?  " 

"An  hour  or  more.  She  went  of  her  own 
accord.  You  '11  find  her  at  Shaw's,"  said  her 
ladyship  harshly.  She  hated  to  admit  that 
she  was  to  blame.  But  as  her  husband  left 
the  room,  banging  the  door  after  him,  she 
caught  her  breath  several  times  in  a  futile 
effort  to  stay  the  sobs,  and  then  broke  down 
and  cried,  a  very  much  abused  young  woman. 
She  hated  everybody  and  everything. 


H 


CHAPTER   V 

IN    WHICH     DAN     CUPID    TRESPASSES 

LADY  BAZELHURST  was  right. 

Penelope  was  making  her  way  through  the 
blackest  of  nights  toward  the  home  of  Ran 
dolph  Shaw.  In  deciding  upon  this  step, 
after  long  deliberation,  she  had  said  to  her 
self  :  "  Randolph  Shaw  is  the  only  real  man 
I  Ve  seen  since  coming  to  the  mountains.  I 
can  trust  him  to  help  me  to-night." 

It  was  fully  three  miles  to  Shaw's  place, 
most  of  the  way  over  the  narrow  valley  road. 
She  knew  she  would  encounter  but  few  tor 
tuous  places.  The  last  half-mile,  however, 
was  steep,  rugged,  and  unfamiliar  to  her. 
She  had  ventured  no  nearer  to  his  home  than 
Renwood's  deserted  cottage,  lying  above  and 
to  the  south  of  the  road,  almost  at  the  base 
of  the  long  hill  on  whose  side  Shaw  had 
built  his  big  home.  To  climb  that  hill  was 


H 


COWARDICE   COURT 

no  easy  task  in  daylight ;  at  midnight,  with 
the  stars  obscured  by  clouds  and  tree-tops, 
there  was  something  perilously  uncertain  in 
the  prospect. 

Only  the  knowledge  that  patience  and 
courage  eventually  would  bring  her  to  the 
end  made  the  journey  possible.  Time  would 
lead  her  to  the  haven  ;  care  would  make  the 
road  a  friend ;  a  stout  heart  was  her  best 
ally.  Strength  of  limb  and  strength  of  pur 
pose  she  had,  in  use  and  in  reserve.  No 
power  could  have  made  her  turn  back  will 
ingly.  Her  anxious  eyes  were  set  ahead  in 
the  blackness ;  her  runaway  feet  were  eager 
in  obedience  to  her  will. 

."  Why  could  n't  I  have  put  it  off  until 
morning? "  she  was  saying  to  herself  as  she 
passed  down  the  gravelled  drive  and  advanced 
to  meet  the  wall  of  trees  that  frowned  blackly 
in  her  face.  "  What  will  he  think  ?  What 
will  he  say  ?  Oh,  he  '11  think  I  'm  such  a 
silly,  romantic  fool.  No,  he  won't.  He  '11 
understand.  He  '11  help  me  on  to  Platts- 
burg  to-morrow.  But  will  he  think  I  've 
done  this  for  effect?  Won't  he  think  I'm 
actually  throwing  myself  at  his  head  ?  No, 
I  can't  turn  back.  I  'd  rather  die  than  go 
back  to  that  house.  It  won't  matter  what 


IN  WHICH   CUPID  TRESPASSES     89 

he  thinks ;  I  '11  be  away  from  all  of  it  to 
morrow.  I  '11  be  out  of  his  life  and  I  won't 
care  what  he  thinks.  England  !  Goodness, 
what's  that?"  She  had  turned  a  bend  in 
the  drive  and  just  ahead  there  was  a  light.  A 
sigh  of  relief  followed  the  question.  It  came 
from  the  lantern  which  hung  to  a  stake  in  the 
road  where  the  new  stone  gate-posts  were 
being  built  by  workmen  from  town.  Bazel- 
hurst  Villa  was  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  through 
the  park,  behind  her;  the  forest  was  ahead. 

At  the  gate  she  stopped  between  the  half- 
finished  stone  posts  and  looked  ahead  with 
the  first  shiver  of  dismay.  Her  limbs  seemed 
ready  to  collapse.  The  flush  of  anger  and  ex 
citement  left  her  face;  a- white,  desolate  look 
came  in  its  stead.  Her  eyes  grew  wide  and 
she  blinked  her  lashes  with  an  awed  uncer 
tainty  that  boded  ill  for  the  stability  of  her 
adventure.  An  owl  hooted  in  mournful 
cadence  close  by  and  she  felt  that  her  hair 
was  going  straight  on  end.  The  tense  fin 
gers  of  one  hand  gripped  the  handle  of  the 
travelling-bag  while  the  other  went  spasmodi 
cally  to  her  heart. 

"  Oh  !  "  she  gasped,  moving  over  quickly 
to  the  stake  on  which  the  lantern  hung.  The 
wind  was  rushing  through  the  tree-tops  with 


9o 


COWARDICE  COURT 


increased  fervour ;  the  air  was  cool  and  wet 
with  the  signs  of  rain ;  a  swirl  of  dust  flew 
up  into  her  face  ;  the  swish  of  leaves  sounded 
like  the  splashing  of  water  in  the  air.  Hold 
ing  her  heart  for  minutes,  she  at  last  regained 
some  of  the  lost  composure.  A  hysterical 
laugh  fell  from  her  lips.  "  What  a  goose  ! 
It  was  an  owl  and  I  've  heard  hundreds  of 
them  up  here.  Still,  they  do  sound  different 
outside  of  one's  own  room.  It's  going  to 
rain.  What  wretched  luck  !  Dear  me,  I 
can't  stand  here  all  night.  How  black  it  is 
ahead  there.  Oooh  !  Really,  now,  it  does 
seem  a  bit  terrifying.  If  I  only  had  a  lan 
tern  it  would  n't  be  so  —  "  her  gaze  fell  upon 
the  labourers'  lantern  that  clattered  aimlessly, 
uselessly  against  the  stake.  An  instant  later 
she  had  jerked  it  from  its  fastenings  with  a 
cry  of  joy.  "  I  '11  send  it  back  when  they  go 
for  my  trunks.  What  luck  !  " 

Without  a  second's  hesitation  she  started 
off  briskly  into  the  woodland  road,  striding 
along  with  the  splendid  swing  of  the  healthy 
Englishwoman  who  has  not  been  trained  to 
dawdle.  Her  walking-skirt  gave  free  play 
to  her  limbs ;  she  was  far  past  the  well- 
known  "  line  in  the  road  "  before  she  paused 
to  take  a  full  breath  and  to  recapitulate. 


IN  WHICH  CUPID  TRESPASSES     91 

Her  heart  beat  faster  and  the  sudden  glow 
in  her  cheek  was  not  from  the  exercise. 
Somehow,  out  there  alone  in  the  world,  the 
most  amazing  feeling  of  tenderness  sped  on 
ahead  to  Randolph  Shaw.  She  tried  to  put 
it  from  her,  but  it  grew  and  grew.  Then 
she  blushed  deep  within  herself  and  her  eyes 
grew  sweet  with  the  memory  of  those  stolen, 
reprehensible  hours  along  the  frontier.  Some 
thing  within  her  breast  cried  out  for  those 
shining,  gone-by  moments,  something  seemed 
to  close  down  on  her  throat,  something 
flooded  her  eyes  with  a  softness  that  rolled 
up  from  her  entire  being.  Their  line  ! 
Their  insurmountable  barrier !  An  absurd 
yet  ineffable  longing  to  fall  down  and  kiss  that 
line  came  over  her  with  compelling  force. 

Her  head  grew  light  with  the  thought  of 
those  moments  when  their  horses  stood  with 
muzzles  together  as  if  kissing  by  proxy  — 
the  flush  grew  deeper,  though  her  blood 
went  cold  and  she  trembled. 

A  pitiful  confusion  seized  her,  an  inexpli 
cable  timidity  crept  into  her  heart,  replacing 
the  bold  assurance  that  had  been  recklessly 
carrying  her  on  to  him.  It  was  as  though 
some  one  had  whispered  the  truth  into  her 
ear  and  she  was  beginning  to  believe. 


COWARDICE  COURT 

From  that  moment  her  courage  began  to 
fail.  The  glow  from  her  lantern  was  a  men 
ace  instead  of  a  help.  A  sweet  timorousness 
enveloped  her  and  something  tingled  —  she 
knew  not  what. 

Spattering  raindrops  whizzed  in  her  face, 
ominous  forerunners  from  the  inky  sky. 
The  wind  was  whistling  with  shrill  glee  in 
the  tree-tops  and  the  tree-tops  tried  to  flee 
before  it.  A  mile  and  a  half  lay  between 
her  and  the  big  cottage  on  the  hillside  —  the 
most  arduous  part  of  the  journey  by  far. 
She  walked  and  ran  as  though  pursued, 
scudding  over  the  road  with  a  swiftness 
that  would  have  amazed  another,  but  which 
seemed  the  essence  of  slowness  to  her. 
Thoughts  of  robbers,  tramps,  wild  beasts, 
assailed  her  with  intermittent  terrors,  but  all 
served  to  diminish  the  feeling  of  shyness  that 
had  been  interfering  with  her  determination. 

Past  Kenwood's  cottage  she  sped,  shudder 
ing  as  she  recognized  the  stone  steps  and 
path  that  ran  up  the  hillside  to  the  haunted 
house.  Ghosts,  witches,  hobgoblins  fell  into 
the  procession  of  pursuers,  cheered  on  by  the 
shrieking  wind  that  grew  more  noisome  as 
her  feet  carried  her  higher  up  the  mountain. 
Now  she  was  on  new  ground.  She  had  never 


IN  WHICH   CUPID  TRESPASSES     93 

before  explored  so  far  as  this.  The  hill  was 
steep  and  the  road  had  black  abysses  out 
beyond  its  edges.  .  .  . 

She  was  breathless,  half  dead  from  fatigue 
and  terror  when  at  last  her  feet  stumbled  up 
the  broad  steps  leading  to  his  porch.  Trem 
bling,  she  sank  into  the  rustic  bench  that 
stood  against  the  wall.  The  lantern  clattered 
to  her  feet,  and  the  bag  with  her  jewels,  her 
letter  of  credit,  and  her  curling  irons  slid  to 
the  floor  behind  the  bench.  Here  was  his 
home !  What  cared  she  for  the  storm  ? 

Even  as  she  lay  there  gasping  for  breath, 
her  eyes  on  the  shadowy  moon  that  was 
breaking  its  way  through  the  clouds,  three 
men  raced  from  the  stables  at  Bazelhurst 
Villa  bent  on  finding  the  mad  young  person 
who  had  fled  the  place.  Scarcely  knowing 
what  direction  he  took,  Lord  Bazelhurst  led 
the  way,  followed  by  the  duke  and  the  count, 
all  of  them  supplied  with  carnage  lamps, 
which,  at  any  other  time,  would  have  been 
sickening  in  their  obtrusiveness.  Except 
for  Lady  Evelyn,  the  rest  of  the  house  slept 
the  sleep  of  ease. 

Gradually  Penelope  recovered  from  the 
effects  of  the  mad  race  up  the  hill.  The 
sputtering  flame  in  the  lantern  called  her 


H, 


94 


COWARDICE  COURT 


into  action.  Clutching  it  from  the  floor 
of  the  porch,  she  softly  began  a  tour  of 
inspection,  first  looking  at  her  watch  to 
find  that  it  was  the  unholy  hour  of  two ! 
Had  some  one  yelled  boo  !  she  would  have 
swooned,  so  tense  was  every  nerve.  Now 
that  she  was  here,  what  was  she  to  do  ?  Her 
heart  came  to  her  mouth,  her  hand  shook, 
but  not  with  fear;  a  nervous  smile  tried  to 
wreak  disaster  to  the  concern  in  her  eyes. 

The  house  was  dark  and  still.  No  one 
was  stirring.  The  porch  was  littered  with 
rugs  and  cushions,  while  on  a  small  table 
near  the  end  stood  a  decanter,  a  siphon,  and 
two  glasses.  Two  ?  He  had  said  he  was 
alone  except  for  the  housekeeper  and  the 
servants.  A  visitor,  then.  This  was  not 
what  she  had  expected.  Her  heart  sank. 
It  would  be  hard  to  face  the  master  of  the 
house,  but  —  a  stranger  ?  Cigarette  stubs 
met  her  bewildered,  troubled  gaze  —  many 
of  them.  Deduction  was  easy  out  there  in  the 
lonely  night.  It  was  easy  to  see  that  Shaw 
and  his  companion  sat  up  so  late  that  the 
servants  had  gone  to  bed. 

•  Distractedly  she  looked  about  for  means 
of  shelter  on  the  porch  until  daylight  could 
abet  her  in  the  flight  to  the  village  beyond. 


H 


IN  WHICH  CUPID  TRESPASSES     95 

The  storm  was  sure  to  come  at  no  far  distant 
time.  She  knew  and  feared  the  violence  of 
the  mountain  rains. 

"  By  all  that 's  holy,"  came  in  a  man's 
voice,  low-toned  and  uncertain ;  "  it  is  nt  a 
dream,  after  all  !" 

She  turned  like  a  flash,  with  a  startled 
exclamation  and  an  instinctive  movement  as 
if  to  shield  herself  from  unbidden  gaze. 
Her  lips  parted  and  her  heart  pounded  like 
a  hammer.  Standing  in  the  doorway  was 
Randolph  Shaw,  his  figure  looming  up  like 
a  monstrous,  wavering  genie  in  the  uncertain 
light  from  the  shaking  lantern.  His  right 
hand  was  to  his  brow  and  his  eyes  were  wide 
with  incredulous  joy.  She  noticed  that  the 
left  sleeve  of  his  dinner  jacket  hung  limp,  and 
that  the  arm  was  in  a  white  sling  beneath. 

"  Is  it  really  you  ?  "  he  cried,  his  hand 
going  instinctively  to  his  watch-pocket  as 
if  doubting  that  it  was  night  instead  of 
morning. 

"  I  've —  I  Ve  run  away  from  them,"  she 
stammered.  "  It 's  two  o'clock  —  don't 
look  !  Oh,  I  'm  so  sorry  now  — why  did 
I  —  " 

"You  ran  away  ?  "  he  exclaimed,  coming 
toward  her.  "  Oh,  it  can't  be  a  dream. 


COWARDICE  COURT 


You  are  there,  are  n't  you  ? "  She  was  a 
pitiable  object  as  she  stood  there,  powerless 
to  retreat,  shaking  like  a  leaf.  He  took  her 
by  the  shoulder.  "  Yes  —  it  is  you.  Good 
Lord,  what  does  it  mean  ?  What  has  hap 
pened  ?  How  did  you  come  here  ?  Are 
you  alone  ?  " 

"  Utterly,  miserably  alone.  Oh,  Mr. 
Shaw  !  "  she  cried  despairingly.  "  You  will 
understand,  won't  you  ?  " 

"Never!  Never  as  long  as  I  live.  It 
is  beyond  comprehension.  The  wonderful 
part  of  it  all  is  that  I  was  sitting  in  there 
dreaming  of  you  —  yes,  I  was.  I  heard 
some  one  out  here,  investigated  and  found 
you  — you,  of  all  people  in  the  world.  And 
I  was  dreaming  that  I  held  you  in  my  arms. 
Yes,  I  was  !  I  was  dreaming  it —  " 

"  Mr.  Shaw !     You  should  n't  —  " 

"  And  I  awoke  to  find  you  —  not  in  my 
arms,  not  in  Bazelhurst  Villa,  but  here  — 
here  on  my  porch." 

"  Like  a  thief  in  the  night,"  she  mur 
mured.  "  What  do  you  think  of  me  ?  " 

"Shall  I  tell  you  — really?"  he  cried. 
The  light  in  his  eyes  drove  her  back  a  step 
or  two,  panic  in  her  heart. 

"  N — no,  no  —  not  now  !  "    she  gasped, 


'  Poor  old  Bonaparte  ! '  was  all  he  said  in  reply  " 


IN  WHICH   CUPID  TRESPASSES 

but  a  great  wave  of  exaltation  swept  through 
her  being.  He  turned  and  walked  away, 
too  dazed  to  speak.  Without  knowing  it, 
she  followed  with  hesitating  steps.  At  the 
edge  of- the  porch  he  paused  and  looked  into 
the  darkness. 

"  By  Jove,  I  must  be  dreaming,"  she  heard 
him  mutter. 

"  No,  you  are  not,"  she  declared  desper 
ately.  "  I  am  here.  I  ask  your  protection 
for  the  night.  I  am  going  away  —  to  Eng 
land  —  to-morrow.  I  could  n't  stay  there 

—  I    just   could  n't.       I  'm    sorry    I    came 
here— I'm— " 

"Thank  heaven,  you  did  come,"  he  ex 
claimed,  turning  to  her  joyously.  "  You 
are  like  a  fairy — the  fairy  princess  come 
true.  It's  unbelievable!  But  —  but  what 
was  it  you  said  about  England  ? "  he  con 
cluded,  suddenly  sober. 

"  I  am  go —  going  home.  There  's  no 
place  else.  I  can't  live  with  her,"  she  said, 
a  bit  tremulously. 

"  To  England  ?     At  once  ?     Your  father 

—  will  he—" 

"  My  father?  I  have  no  father.  Oh  !  " 
with  a  sudden  start.  Her  eyes  met  his  in 
a  helpless  stare.  "  I  never  thought.  My 

7 


98 


COWARDICE  COURT 


**1 

9 


home  was  at  Bazelhurst  Castle  —  their 
home.  I  can't  go  there.  Good  heavens, 
what  am  I  to  do  ?  " 

A  long  time  afterward  she  recalled  his 
exultant  exclamation,  checked  at  its  outset,  — 
recalled  it  with  a  perfect  sense  of  understand 
ing.  With  rare  good  taste  he  subdued 
whatever  it  was  that  might  have  struggled 
for  expression  and  simply  extended  his 
right  hand  to  relieve  her  of  the  lantern. 

"We  never  have  been  enemies,  Miss 
Drake,"  he  said,  controlling  his  voice  admir 
ably.  "  But  had  we  been  so  up  to  this  very 
instant,  I  am  sure  I  'd  surrender  now.  I 
don't  know  what  has  happened  at  the  Villa. 
It  does  n't  matter.  You  are  here  to  ask  my 
protection  and  my  help.  I  am  at  your  ser 
vice,  my  home  is  yours,  my  right  hand  also. 
You  are  tired  and  wet  and  —  nervous. 
Won't  you  come  inside  ?  I  '11  get  a  light 
in  a  jiffy  and  Mrs.  Ulrich,  my  housekeeper, 
shall  be  with  you  as  soon  as  I  can  rout  her 
out.  Come  in,  please."  She  held  back 
doubtfully,  a  troubled,  uncertain  look  in  her 
eyes. 

"  You  will  understand,  won't  you  ?  "  she 
asked  simply. 

<c  And  no  questions  asked,"  he  said  from 


IN  WHICH  CUPID  TRESPASSES     99 

the  doorway.  Still  she  held  back,  her  gaze 
going  involuntarily  to  the  glasses  on  the 
table.  He  interpreted  the  look  of  inquiry. 
"  There  were  two  of  us.  The  doctor  was 
here  picking  out  the  shot,  that's  all.  He's 
gone.  It's  all  right.  Wait  here  and  I'll 
get  a  light."  The  flame  in  her  lantern  sud 
denly  ended  its  feeble  life. 

She  stood  inside  his  doorway  and  heard 
him  shuffle  across  the  floor  in  search  of  the 
lamps. 

"  Dark  as  Egypt,  eh  ?  "  he  called  out 
from  the  opposite  side  of  the  room. 

"  Not  as  dark  as  the  forest,  Mr.  Shaw." 

"  Good  heavens,  what  a  time  you  must 
have  had.  All  alone,  were  you  ?  " 

"Of  course.     I  was  not  eloping." 

"  I  beg  your  pardon." 

"  Where  were  you  sitting  when  I  came 
up?" 

"  Here  —  in  the  dark.  I  was  waiting  for 
the  storm  to  come  and  dozed  away,  I  dare 
say.  I  love  a  storm,  don't  you  ?  " 

'"  Yes,  if  I  'm  indoors.  Ah  !  "  He  had 
struck  a  match  and  was  lighting  the  wick  of 
a  lamp  beside  the  huge  fireplace.  "  I  sup 
pose  you  think  I  'm  perfectly  crazy.  I  'm 
horrid." 


COWARDICE  COURT 

"  Not  at  all.  Sit  down  here  on  the 
couch,  please.  More  cheerful,  eh  ?  Good 
Lord,  listen  to  the  wind.  You  got  here 
just  in  time.  Now,  if  you  '11  excuse  me, 
I  '11  have  Mrs.  Ulrich  down  in  a  minute. 
She  '11  take  good  care  of  you.  And  I  '11 
make  you  a  nice  hot  drink,  too.  You  need 
it."  In  the  door  of  the  big  living-room  he 
turned  to  her,  a  look  of  extreme  doubt  in 
his  eyes.  "  By  Jove,  I  bet  I  do  wake  up. 
It  can't  be  true."  She  laughed  plain 
tively  and  shook  her  head  in  humble  self- 
abasement.  "  Don't  be  lonesome.  I  '11  be 
back  in  a  minute." 

"  Don't  hurry,"  she  murmured  apologeti 
cally.  Then  she  settled  back  limply  in  the 
wide  couch  and  inspected  the  room,  his  foot 
steps  noisily  clattering  down  the  long  hallway 
to  the  left.  She  saw,  with  some  misgiving, 
that  it  was  purely  a  man's  habitation.  Shaw 
doubtless  had  built  and  furnished  the  big 
cottage  without  woman  as  a  consideration. 
The  room  was  large,  comfortable,  solid ; 
there  was  not  a  suggestion  of  femininity  in 
it — high  or  low  —  except  the  general  air  of 
cleanliness.  The  furniture  was  rough-hewn 
and  built  for  use,  not  ornamentation ;  the 
walls  were  hung  with  English  prints,  antlers, 


IN  WHICH  CUPID  TRESPASSES    101 

mementoes  of  the  hunt  and  the  field  of  sport ; 
the  floor  was  covered  with  skins  and  great 
"  carpet  rag  "  rugs.  The  whole  aspect  was 
so  distinctly  mannish  that  her  heart  fluttered 
ridiculously  in  its  loneliness.  Her  cogita 
tions  were  running  seriously  toward  riot 
when  he  came  hurriedly  down  the  hall  and 
into  her  presence. 

"She'll  be  down  presently.  In  fact,  so 
will  the  cook  and  the  housemaid.  Gad,  Miss 
Drake,  they  were  so  afraid  of  the  storm  that 
all  of  them  piled  into  Mrs.  Ulrich's  room. 
I  wonder  at  your  courage  in  facing  the 
symptoms  outdoors.  Now,  I  '11  fix  you  a 
drink.  Take  off  your  hat — be  comfortable. 
Cigarette  ?  Good  !  Here's  my  sideboard. 
See?  It's  a  nuisance,  this  having  only  one 
arm  in  commission ;  affects  my  style  as  a 
barkeep.  Don't  stir;  I'll  be  able  — " 

"  Let  me  help  you.  I  mean,  please  don't 
go  to  so  much  trouble.  Really  I  want  noth 
ing  but  a  place  to  sleep  to-night.  This 
couch  will  do  —  honestly.  And  some  one 
to  call  me  at  daybreak,  so  that  I  may  be  on 
my  way."  He  looked  at  her  and  laughed 
quizzically.  "  Oh,  I  'm  in  earnest,  Mr. 
Shaw.  I  would  n't  have  stopped  here  if 
it  had  n't  been  for  the  storm." 


IO2 


COWARDICE  COURT 


"  Come,  now,  Miss  Drake,  you  spoil  the 
fairy  tale.  You  did  intend  to  come  here. 
It  was  the  only  place  for  you  to  go  —  and 
I  'm  glad  of  it.  My  only  regret  is  that  the 
house  is  n't  filled  with  chaperons." 

"  Why  ? "  she  demanded  with  a  guilty 
start. 

"  Because  I  could  then  say  to  you  all  the 
things  that  are  in  my  heart  —  aye,  that  are 
almost  bursting  from  my  lips.  I  —  I  can't 
say  them  now,  you  know,"  he  said,  and  she 
understood  his  delicacy.  For  some  minutes 
she  sat  in  silence  watching  him  as  he  clumsily 
mixed  the  drinks  and  put  the  water  over  the 
alcohol  blaze.  Suddenly  he  turned  to  her 
with  something  like  alarm  in  his  voice.  "  By 
George,  you  don't  suppose  they  '11  pursue 
you  ? " 

"Oh,  would  n't  that  be  jolly?  It  would 
be  like  the  real  story-book  —  the  fairy  and 
the  ogres  and  all  that.  But,"  dubiously, 
"  I  'm  sorely  afraid  they  consider  me  rubbish. 
Still  —  "looking  up  encouragingly  —  "my 
brother  would  try  to  find  me  if  he  —  if  he 
knew  that  I  was  gone." 

To  her  surprise,  he  whistled  softly  and 
permitted  a  frown  of  anxiety  to  creep  over 
his  face.  "  I  had  n't  thought  of  that,"  he 


H 


IN  WHICH  CUPID  TRESPASSES    103 

observed  reflectively.  Then  he  seemed  to 
throw  off  the  momentary  symptoms  of  un 
easiness,  adding,  with  a  laugh  :  "  I  daresay 
nothing  will  happen.  The  storm  would  put 
a  stop  to  all  idea  of  pursuit." 

"  Let  them  pursue,"  she  said,  a  stubborn 
light  in  her  eyes.  "  I  am  my  own  mistress, 
Mr.  Shaw.  They  can't  take  me,  willy  nilly, 
as  if  I  were  a  child,  you  know." 

"  That 's  quite  true.  You  don't  un 
derstand,"  he  said  slowly,  his  back  to 
her. 

"  You  mean  the  law  ?  Is  it  different  from 
ours  ?  " 

"  Not  that.  The  —  er  —  situation.  You 
see,  they  might  think  it  a  trifle  odd  if  they 
found  you  here  —  with  me.  Don't  you 
understand  ? "  He  turned  to  her  with  a 
very  serious  expression.  She  started  and 
sat  bolt  upright  to  stare  at  him  compre 
hensively. 

"You  mean  —  it — it  isn't  quite — er — " 

"  Regular,  perhaps,"  he  supplied.    "  Please 
keep  your  seat !     I  'm  not  the  censor ;   I  'm 
not   even    an    opinion.     Believe    me,    Miss  111^. 
Drake,  my   only   thought   was    and    is    for  Ufl\y 
your  good." 

"  I  see.     They  would  believe  evil  of  me 


IO4 


COWARDICE  COURT 


if  they  knew  I  had  come  to  you,"  she 
mused,  turning  quite  cold. 

cc  I  know  the  kind  of  people  your  sister- 
in-law  has  at  her  place,  Miss  Drake.  Their 
sort  can  see  but  one  motive  in  anything. 
You  know  them,  too,  I  daresay." 

"Yes,  I  know  them,"  she  said  uneasily. 
"  Good  heavens,  what  a  fool  I  've  been," 
she  added,  starting  to  her  feet.  "I  might 
have  known  they  '11  say  all  sorts  of  terrible 
things.  They  must  not  find  me  here.  Mr. 
Shaw,  I'm  —  I  am  so  ashamed  —  I  wonder 
what  you  are  thinking  of  me."  Her  lip 
trembled  and  there  was  such  a  pleading  look 
in  her  dark  eyes  that  he  controlled  himself 
with  difficulty.  It  was  only  by  imposing 
the  severest  restraint  upon  his  susceptibili 
ties  that  he  was  able  to  approach  her  calmly. 

"  I  can't  tell  you  now  —  not  here  —  what 
I  am  thinking.  It  is  n't  the  place.  Maybe 
—  maybe  you  can  read  my  thought,  Penel — 
Miss  Drake.  Look  up,  please.  Can't  you 
read  —  oh,  there  now  —  I  beg  your  pardon  ! 
You  come  to  me  for  protection  and  I  — 
well,  don't  be  too  hard  on  me  just  yet.  I  '11 
find  the  time  and  place  to  tell  you."  He 
drew  away  almost  as  his  hand  was  ready  to 
clasp  hers  —  all  because  her  sweet  eyes  met 


IN  WHICH  CUPID  TRESPASSES 

his  trustingly — he  could  have  sworn  — 
lovingly. 

"  Just  now  I  am  a  poor  little  reprobate," 
she  sighed  ever  so  miserably.  "  You  are 
very  good.  I  '11  not  forget." 

"  I  '11  not  permit  you  to  forget,"  he  said 
eagerly. 

"  Is  n't  the  housekeeper  a  long  time  in 
coming  ?  "  she  asked  quickly.  He  laughed 
contentedly. 

"  We  Ve  no  reason  to  worry  about  her. 
It's  the  pursuers  from  Bazelhurst  that 
should  trouble  us.  Won't  you  tell  me  the 
whole  story  ?  "  And  she  told  him  every 
thing,  sitting  there  beside  him  with  a  hot 
drink  in  her  hand  and  a  growing  shame  in 
her  heart.  It  was  dawning  upon  her  with 
alarming  force  that  she  was  exposing  a 
hitherto  unknown  incentive.  It  was  not  a 
comfortable  awakening.  <c  And  you  cham 
pion  me  to  that  extent  ? "  he  cried  joyously. 
She  nodded  bravely  and  went  on. 

"  So  here  I  am,"  she  said  in  conclusion. 
"  I  really  could  not  have  walked  to  Ridgely 
to-night,  could  I  ?  " 

"  I  should  say  not." 

"  And  there  was  really  nowhere  else  to 
come  but  here  ?  "  dubiously. 


io6 


COWARDICE  COURT 


"  See  that  light  over  there  —  up  the 
mountain  ?  "  he  asked,  leading  her  to  a 
window.  "  Old  man  Grimes  and  his  wife 
live  up  there.  They  keep  a  light  burning  all 
night  to  scare  Kenwood's  ghost  away.  By 
Jove,  the  storm  will  be  upon  us  in  a  minute. 
I  thought  it  had  blown  around  us."  The  roll 
of  thunder  came  up  the  valley.  "  Thank 
heaven,  you  're  safe  indoors.  Let  them  pur 
sue  if  they  like.  I  '11  hide  you  if  they  come, 
and  the  servants  are  close-mouthed." 

"  I  don't  like  the  way  you  put  it,  Mr. 
Shaw." 

"  Hullo,  hullo  —  the  house,"  came  a  shout 
from  the  wind-ridden  night  outside.  Two 
hearts  inside  stopped  beating  for  a  second 
or  two.  She  caught  her  breath  sharply  as 
she  clasped  his  arm. 

"  They  are  after  me  !  "  she  gasped. 

"  They  must  not  find  you  here.  Really, 
Miss  Drake,  I  mean  it.  They  would  n't 
understand.  Come  with  me.  Go  down 
this  hall  quickly.  It  leads  to  the  garden 
back  of  the  house.  There  's  a  gun-room  at 
the  end  of  the  hall.  Go  in  there,  to  your 
right.  Here,  take  this!  It's  an  electric 
saddle-lantern.  I  '11  head  these  fellows  off. 
They  shan't  find  you.  Don't  be  alarmed." 


IN  WHICH  CUPID  TRESPASSES    107 

She  sped  down  the  narrow  hall  and  he, 
taking  time  to  slip  into  a  long  dressing-coat, 
stepped  out  upon  the  porch  in  response  to 
the  now  prolonged  and  impatient  shouts. 

"  Who  's  there  ?  "  he  shouted.  The  light 
from  the  windows  revealed  several  horsemen 
in  the  roadway. 

"  Friends,"  came  back  through  the  wind. 
"  Let  us  in  out  of  the  storm.  It 's  a 
terror." 

"  I  don't  know  you."  There  was  a  shout 
of  laughter  and  some  profanity. 

"  Oh,  yes  you  do,  Mr.  Shaw.  Open  up 
and  let  us  in.  It's  Dave  Rank  and  Ed 
Hunter.  We  can't  make  the  cabin  before 
the  rain."  Shaw  could  see  their  faces  now 
and  then  by  the  flashes  of  lightning  and  he 
recognized  the  two  woodsmen,  who  doubt 
less  had  been  visiting  sweethearts  up  toward 
Ridgely. 

"  Take  your  horses  to  the  stable,  boys,   /.i  ~^ 
and  come  in,"  he  called,  laughing  heartily.  |ll\V 
Then  he  hurried  off  to  the  gun-room.     He 
passed  Mrs.  Ulrich  coming  downstairs  yawn 
ing  prodigiously  ;  he  called  to  her  to  wait 
for  him  in  the  library. 

There  was  no  one  in  the  gun-room  ;  the 
door  leading  to  the  back  porch  was  open. 


COWARDICE  COURT 


With  an  exclamation  he  leaped  outside  and 
looked  about  him. 

"  Good  heavens  !  "  he  cried,  staggering 
back. 

Far  off  in  the  night,  a  hundred  yards  or 
more  up  the  road,  leading  to  Grimes'  cabin 
he  saw  the  wobbling,  uncertain  flicker  of  a 
light  wending  its  way  like  a  will-o'-the-wisp 
through  the  night.  Without  a  moment's 
hesitation  and  with  something  strangely  like 
an  oath,  he  rushed  into  the  house,  almost 
upsetting  the  housekeeper  in  his  haste. 

"Visitors  outside.  Make  'em  comfortable. 
Back  soon,"  he  jerked  out  as  he  changed 
his  coat  with  small  respect  for  his  injured 
arm.  Then  he  clutched  a  couple  of  rain 
coats  from  the  rack  and  flew  out  of  the  back 
door  like  a  man  suddenly  gone  mad. 


CHAPTER   VI 

IN    WHICH    A    GHOST    TRESPASSES 


JL  HE  impulse  which  drove  Penelope  out 
for  the  second  time  that  night  may  be  readily 
appreciated.  Its  foundation  was  fear;  its  sub 
ordinate  emotions  were  shame,  self-pity  and 
consciousness  of  her  real  feeling  toward  the 
man  of  the  house.  The  true  spirit  of  woman 
hood  revolted  with  its  usual  waywardness. 

She  was  flying  down  the  stony  road,  some 
distance  from  the  cottage,  in  the  very  face 
of  the  coming  tornado,  her  heart  beating  like 
a  trip-hammer,  her  eyes  bent  on  the  little 
light  up  the  mountain-side,  before  it  occurred 
to  her  that  this  last  flight  was  not  only 
senseless  but  perilous.  She  even  laughed  at 
herself  for  a  fool  as  she  recalled  the  tell-tale 
handbag  on  the  porch  and  the  damning  pres 
ence  of  a  Bazelhurst  lantern  in  the  hallway. 

The  storm  which  had  been  raging  farther 


I  IO 


COWARDICE  COURT 


•0 


down  the  valley  was  at  last  whirling  up  to 
the  hill-tops,  long  delayed  as  if  in  gleeful 
anticipation  of  catching  her  alone  and  un 
protected.  The  little  electric  saddle-lamp 
that  she  carried  gave  out  a  feeble  glow, 
scarce  opening  the  way  in  the  darkness  more 
than  ten  feet  ahead.  Rough  and  irksome 
was  the  road,  most  stubborn  the  wall  of 
wind.  The  second  threat  of  the  storm  was 
more  terrifying  than  the  first ;  at  any  instant 
it  was  likely  to  break  forth  in  all  its  slashing 
fury  —  and  she  knew  not  whither  she  went. 
Even  as  she  lost  heart  and  was  ready  to 
turn  wildly  back  in  an  effort  to  reach  Shaw's 
home  before  the  deluge,  the  lightning  flashes 
revealed  to  her  the  presence  of  a  dwelling 
just  off  the  road  not  two  hundred  feet  ahead. 
She  stumbled  forward,  crying  like  a  fright 
ened  child.  There  were  no  lights.  The 
house  looked  dark,  bleak,  unfriendly. 
Farther  up  the  hillside  still  gleamed  the 
little  light  that  was  meant  to  keep  Ren- 
wood's  ghost  from  disturbing  the  slumbers 
of  old  man  Grimes  and  his  wife.  She  could 
not  reach  that  light,  that  much  she  knew. 
Her  feet  were  like  hundredweights,  her 
limbs  almost  devoid  of  power  ;  Grimes'  hut 
appeared  to  be  a  couple  of  miles  away. 


H 


A  GHOST  TRESPASSES        in 

With  a  last,  breathless  effort,  she  turned  off 
the  road  and  floundered  through  weeds  and 
brush  until  she  came  to  what  proved  to  be 
the  rear  of  the  darkened  house.  Long,  low, 
rangy  it  reached  off  into  the  shadows,  chilling 
in  its  loneliness.  There  was  no  time  left  for 
her  to  climb  the  flight  of  steps  and  pound 
on  the  back  door.  The  rain  was  swishing 
in  the  trees  with  a  hiss  that  forbade  delay. 

She  threw  herself,  panting  and  terror- 
stricken,  into  the  cave-like  opening  under 
the  porch,  her  knees  giving  way  after  the  su 
preme  effort.  The  great  storm  broke  as  she 
crouched  far  back  against  the  wall ;  her  hands 
over  her  ears,  her  eyes  tightly  closed.  She 
was  safe  from  wind  and  rain,  but  not  from  the 
sounds  of  that  awful  conflict.  The  lantern  lay 
at  her  feet,  sending  its  ray  out  into  the  storm 
with  the  senseless  fidelity  of  a  beacon  light. 

"Penelope!"   came  a  voice  through  the 
storm,  and    a  second  later  a   man   plunged 
into    the    recess,  crashing    against    the    wall 
beside  her.      Something  told  her  who  it  was, 
even  before  he  dropped  beside  her  and  threw 
his  strong  arm  about  her  shoulders.     The  m^. 
sound  of  the  storm  died  away  as  she  buried  yj\"/ 
her  face  on   his   shoulder  and  shivered   so 
mightily   that  he  was    alarmed.     With    her 


112          COWARDICE  COURT 

face  burning,  her  blood  tingling,  she  lay 
there  and  wondered  if  the  throbbing  of  her 
heart  were  not  about  to  kill  her. 

He  was  crying  something  into  her  ear  — 
wild,  incoherent  words  that  seemed  to  have 
the  power  to  quiet  the  storm.  And  she 
was  responding  —  she  knew  that  eager  words 
were  falling  from  her  lips,  but  she  never 
knew  what  they  were  —  responding  with  a 
fervour  that  was  overwhelming  her  with  joy. 
Lips  met  again  and  again  and  there  was  no 
thought  of  the  night,  of  the  feud,  the  es 
capade,  the  Kenwood  ghost — or  of  aught 
save  the  two  warm  living  human  bodies  that 
had  found  each  other. 

The  storm,  swerving  with  the  capricious 
mountain  winds,  suddenly  swept  their  refuge 
with  sheets  of  water.  Randolph  Shaw  threw 
the  raincoats  over  his  companion  and  both 
laughed  hysterically  at  their  plight,  suddenly 
remembered. 

"  We  can't  stay  here,"  he  shouted. 

"We  can't  go  out  into  it,"  she  cried. 
"  Where  are  we  ?  " 

"Kenwood's,"  he  called  back.  Their 
position  was  untenable.  He  was  drenched ; 
the  raincoats  protected  her  as  she  crouched 
back  into  the  most  remote  corner.  Look- 


A  GHOST  TRESPASSES 

ing  about,  he  discovered  a  small  door  lead 
ing  to  the  cellar.  It  opened  the  instant 
he  touched  the  latch.  "  Come,  quick/'  he 
cried,  lifting  her  to  her  feet.  "In  here  — 
stoop  !  I  have  the  light.  This  is  the  cellar. 
I  '11  have  to  break  down  a  door  leading  to 
the  upper  part  of  the  house,  but  that  will 
not  be  difficult.  Here's  an  axe  or  two. 
Good  Lord,  I  'm  soaked  !  " 

"  Whe —  where  are  we  going  ?  "  she 
gasped,  as  he  drew  her  across  the  earthern 
floor. 

"  Upstairs.  It 's  comfortable  up  there." 
They  were  at  the  foot  of  the  narrow  stair 
way.  She  held  back. 

"  Never !  It 's  the  —  the  haunted  house  ! 
I  can't— Randolph." 

"Pooh!  Don't  be  afraid.  I'm  with 
you,  dearest." 

"  I  know,"  she  gulped.  "  But  you  have 
only  one  arm.  Oh,  I  can't !  " 

"It's  all  nonsense  about  ghosts.  I've 
slept  here  twenty  times,  Penelope.  People 
have  seen  my  light  and  my  shadow,  that 's 
all.  •  I  'm  a  pretty  substantial  ghost." 

Oh,  dear !  What  a  disappointment. 
And  there  are  no  spooks  ?  Not  even  Mrs. 
Kenwood  ?  " 


1 14 


6X5 

COWARDICE  COURT 


"  Of  course  she  may  come  back,  dear, 
but  you  'd  hardly  expect  a  respectable  lady 
spook  to  visit  the  place  with  me  stopping 
here.  Even  ghosts  have  regard  for  conven 
tionalities.  She  could  nt  —  " 

"  How  much  more  respectable  than  I," 
Penelope  murmured  plaintively. 

"  Forgive  me/'  he  implored. 

"  I  would  —  only  you  are  so  wet." 

The  door  above  was  locked,  but  Shaw 
swung  the  axe  so  vigorously  that  any  but  a 
very  strong-nerved  ghost  must  have  been 
frightened  to  death  once  more. 

"  It 's  my  house,  you  know,"  he  explained 
from  the  top  step.  "  There  we  are  !  Come 
up,  Penelope.  The  fort  is  yours." 

She  followed  him  into  the  hall  above.  In 
silence  they  walked  along  the  bare  floors 
through  empty  rooms  until  at  last  he  opened 
a  door  in  what  proved  to  be  the  left  wing. 
To  her  surprise,  this  room  was  comfortably 
furnished.  There  were  ashes  in  the  big  fire 
place  and  there  were  lamps  which  had  been 
used  recently — for  they  were  filled  with  oil. 

"Here's  where  I  read  sometimes,"  he 
explained.  "I  have  slept  on  that  couch. 
Last  winter  I  came  up  here  to  hunt.  My 
cottage  was  n't  finished,  so  I  stayed  here. 


A  GHOST  TRESPASSES        115 

I  '11  confess  I  Ve  heard  strange  sounds  — 
now,  don't  shiver !  Once  or  twice  I  Ve 
been  a  bit  nervous,  but  I  'm  still  alive,  you 
see/'  He  lighted  the  wicks  in  the  two  big 
lamps  while  she  looked  on  with  the  chills 
creeping  up  and  down  her  back.  "  I  '11  have 
a  bully  fire  in  the  fireplace  in  just  a  minute." 

"  Let  me  help  you,"  she  suggested,  com 
ing  quite  close  to  him  with  uneasy  glances 
over  her  shoulders. 

Ten  minutes  later  they  were  sitting  before 
a  roaring  fire,  quite  content  even  though 
there  was  a  suggestion  of  amazed  ghosts 
lurking  in  the  hallway  behind  them.  No 
doubt  old  man  Grimes  and  his  wife,  if  they 
awoke  in  the  course  of  the  night,  groaned 
deep  prayers  in  response  to  the  bright  light 
from  the  windows  of  the  haunted  house. 
Shaw  and  Penelope  smiled  securely  as  they 
listened  to  the  howling  storm  outside. 

"  Well,  this  is  trespassing,"  she  said, 
beaming  a  happy  smile  upon  him. 

"  I  shall  be  obliged  to  drive  you  out, 
alas,"  he  said  reflectively.  "  Do  you  recall 
my  vow  ?  As  long  as  you  are  a  Bazelhurst, 
I  must  perforce  eject  you." 

"  Not  to-night ! "  she  cried  in  mock 
dismay. 


116 


COWARDICE  COURT 


"  But,  as  an  alternative,  you  '11  not  be  a 
Bazelhurst  long,"  he  went  on  eagerly,  sud 
denly  taking  her  hands  into  his,  forgetful  of 
the  wounded  left.  "  I  'm  going  to  try  tres 
passing  myself.  To-morrow  I  'm  going  to 
see  your  brother.  It  's  regular,  you  know. 
I  'm  going  to  tell  the  head  of  your  clan  that 
you  are  coming  over  to  Shaw,  heart  and 
hand." 

"  Oh  !  "  she  exclaimed.  "  You  —  you  — 
no,  no  !  You  must  not  do  that !  " 

"  But,  my  dear,  you  are  going  to  marry 
me." 

"Yes  —  I  — suppose  so,"  she  murmured 
helplessly.  "  That  is  n't  what  I  meant.  I 
mean,  it  is  n't  necessary  to  ask  Cecil.  Ask 
me  ;  I  '11  consent  for  him." 

Half  an  hour  passed.  Then  he  went  to 
the  window  and  looked  out  into  the  storm. 

"  You  must  lie  down  and  get  some  sleep," 
he  insisted,  coming  back  to  her.  "The 
storm  's  letting  up,  but  we  can't  leave  here 
for  quite  a  while.  I  '11  sit  up  and  watch. 
I  'm  too  happy  to  sleep."  She  protested, 
but  her  heavy  eyes  were  his  allies.  Soon  he 
sat  alone  before  the  fire ;  she  slept  sound  on 
the  broad  couch  in  the  corner,  a  steamer  rug 
across  her  knees.  A  contented  smile  curved 


Hi 


A  GHOST  TRESPASSES        117 

his  lips  as  he  gazed  reflectively  into  the 
flames.  He  was  not  thinking  of  Mrs. 
Kenwood's  amiable  ghost. 

How  long  she  had  been  asleep,  Penelope 
did  not  know.  She  awoke  with  a  start,  her 
flesh  creeping.  A  nameless  dread  came  over 
her ;  she  felt  that  she  was  utterly  alone  and 
surrounded  by  horrors.  It  was  a  full  minute 

—  a  sickening  hour,  it  seemed  —  before  she 
realized  that  she  was  in  the  room  with  the 
man  she  loved.     Her  frightened  eyes  caught 
sight  of  him  lying  back  in  the  chair  before 
the  dying  fire  in  the  chimney  place.     The 
lights  were  low,  the  shadows  gaunt  and  chill. 

A  terrified  exclamation  started  to  her  lips. 
Her  ears  again  caught  the  sound  of  some 
one  moving  in  the  house  —  some  alien 
visitor.  There  was  no  mistaking  the  sound 

—  the    distant,    sepulchral    laugh    and    the 
shuffling  of  feet,  almost  at  the  edge  of  the 
couch  it  seemed. 

"  Randolph  !  "  she  whispered  hoarsely. 
The  man  in  the  chair  did  not  move.  She 
threw  off  the  blanket  and  came  to  a  sitting 
posture  on  the  side  of  the  couch,  her  fingers 
clutching  the  covering  with  tense  horror. 
Again  the  soft,  rumbling  laugh  and  the 
sound  of  footsteps  on  the  stairway.  Like 


n8 


COWARDICE  COURT 


0 


a  flash  she  sped  across  the  room  and 
clutched  frantically  at  Randolph's  shoul 
ders.  He  awoke  with  an  exclamation,  star 
ing  bewildered  into  the  horrified  face  above. 

"The  —  the  ghost!"  she  gasped,  her 
eyes  glued  upon  the  hall  door.  He  leaped 
to  his  feet  and  threw  his  arms  about  her. 

"  You  've  had  a  bad  dream/'  he  said. 
"  What  a  beast  I  was  to  fall  asleep.  Lord, 
you  're  frightened  half  out  of  your  wits. 
Don't  tremble  so,  dearest.  There's  no 
ghost.  Every  one  knows  —  " 

"  Listen  —  listen  !  "  she  whispered.  To 
gether  they  stood  motionless,  almost  breath 
less  before  the  fire,  the  glow  from  which 
threw  their  shadows  across  the  room  to 
meet  the  mysterious  invader. 

"  Good  Lord,"  he  muttered,  unwilling  to 
believe  his  ears.  "  There  is  some  one  in 
the  house.  I  've  —  I  've  heard  sounds  here 
before,  but  not  like  these."  Distinctly  to 
their  startled  ears  came  the  low,  subdued 
murmur  of  a  human  voice  and  then  unmis 
takable  moans  from  the  very  depth  of  the 
earth  —  from  the  grave,  it  seemed. 

"  Do  you  hear  ?  "  she  whispered.  "  Oh, 
this  dreadful  place  !  Take  me  away,  Ran 
dolph,  dear,  —  " 


A  GHOST  TRESPASSES        119 

"  Don't  be  afraid,"  he  said,  drawing 
her  close.  "  There  's  nothing  supernatural 
about  those  sounds.  They  come  from  lips 
as  much  alive  as  ours.  I  '11  investigate." 
He  grabbed  the  heavy  poker  from  the 
chimney  corner,  and  started  toward  the 
door.  She  followed  close  behind,  his  assur 
ance  restoring  in  a  measure  the  courage 
that  had  temporarily  deserted  her. 

In  the  hallway  they  paused  to  look  out 
over  the  broad  porch.  The  storm  had  died 
away,  sighing  its  own  requiem  in  the  misty 
tree-tops.  Dawn  was  not  far  away.  A  thick 
fog  was  rising  to  meet  the  first  glance  of  day. 
In  surprise  Shaw  looked  at  his  watch,  her  face 
at  his  shoulder.  It  was  after  five  o'clock. 

"  Ghosts  turn  in  at  midnight,  dear,"  he 
said  with  a  cheerful  smile.  "  They  don't 
keep  such  hours  as  these." 

"  But  who  can  it  be  ?  There  are  no 
tramps  in  the  mountains,"  she  protested, 
glancing  over  her  shoulder  apprehensively. 

"  Listen  !  By  Jove,  that  voice  came  from 
the  cellar." 

"  And  the  lock  is  broken,"  she  exclaimed. 
fc  But  how  silly  of  me  !  Ghosts  don't  stop 
for  locks." 

"  I  '11  drop  the  bolts  just  the  same,"  he 


120 


COWARDICE   COURT 


said,  as  they  hurried  down  the  hallway. 
At  the  back  stairs  they  stopped  and  lis 
tened  for  many  minutes.  Not  a  sound 
came  up  to  them  from  below.  Softly  he 
closed  the  door  and  lowered  two  heavy  bars 
into  place.  "  If  there  's  any  one  down  there 
they  probably  think  they've  heard  spooks 
trotting  around  up  here." 

"Really,  it's  quite  thrilling,  isn't  it?" 
she  whispered,  in  her  excitement. 

"In  any  event,  we 're  obliged  to  remain 
under  cover  until  they  depart,"  he  said 
thoughtfully.  "We  can't  be  seen  here, 
dearest." 

"  No,"  she  murmured,  "  not  even  though 
it  is  our  house." 

They  returned  to  the  big  room  as  softly 
as  mice  and  he  left  her  a  moment  later  to 
close  the  heavy  window  shutters  on  the 
porch.  When  he  returned  there  was  a  grim 
smile  on  his  face  and  his  voice  shook  a  little 
as  he  spoke. 

"  I  Ve  heard  the  voices  again.  They 
came  from  the  laundry,  I  think.  The  Ren- 
woods  were  downright  Yankees,  Penelope ; 
I  will  swear  that  these  voices  are  amazingly 
English." 


JL  HIS  narrative  has  quite  as  much  to  do 
with  the  Bazelhurst  side  of  the  controversy 
as  it  has  with  Shaw's.  It  is  therefore  but 
fair  that  the  heroic  invasion  by  Lord  Cecil 
should  receive  equal  consideration  from 
the  historian.  Shaw's  conquest  of  one  mem 
ber  of  the  force  opposing  him  was  scarcely 
the  result  of  bravery  ;  on  the  other  hand 
Lord  Cecil's  dash  into  the  enemy's  country 
was  the  very  acme  of  intrepidity.  Shaw  had 
victory  fairly  thrust  upon  him  ;  Lord  Bazel 
hurst  had  a  thousand  obstacles  to  overcome 
before  he  could  even  so  much  as  stand  face 
to  face  with  the  enemy.  Hence  the  expedi 
tion  that  started  off  in  the  wake  of  the  de 
serter  deserves  more  than  passing  mention. 

Down  the  drive  and  out  into  the  moun 
tain  road  clattered  the  three  horsemen.     Lady 


9 


122 


COWARDICE  COURT 


Bazelhurst,  watching  at  the  window  casement, 
almost  swooned  with  amazement  at  the  sight 
of  them.  The  capes  of  their  mackintoshes 
seemed  to  flaunt  a  satirical  farewell  in  her 
face  ;  their  owners,  following  the  light  of  the 
carriage  lamps,  swept  from  view  around  a 
bend  in  the  road. 

His  lordship  had  met  the  duke  in  the 
hall,  some  distance  from  that  nobleman's 
room,  and,  without  observing  Barminster's 
apparent  confusion,  commanded  him  to  join 
in  the  pursuit.  Barminster  explained  that  he 
was  going  to  see  how  the  cook  was  resting ; 
however,  he  would  go  much  farther  to  be  of 
service  to  the  runaway  sister  of  his  host. 

"She's  broken-hearted,"  half  sobbed  the 
brother. 

"Yes,"  agreed  the  duke;  "and  what's  a 
broken  leg  to  a  broken  heart  ?  Penelope's 
heart,  at  that.  Demme,  I  can't  find  the 
cook's  room,  anyway." 

"  It 's  in  the  servants'  wing,"  said  Cecil, 
anxious  to  be  off. 

To  be  sure.     Stupid  ass  I  am.     I   say, 

>or.    Let 's  rout 


old  chap,  here  's  Deveaux's  door, 
d  some  one 
if  we  have  to  force  our 


him  out.     We'll 


horses 
house. 


way 


to  hold  the 
into  Shaw's 


Good  heaven,  Randolph,  go  to  him  !     He  is  hurt 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     123 

The  count  was  not  thoroughly  awake  un 
til  he  found  himself  in  the  saddle  some  time 
later ;  it  is  certain  that  he  did  not  know  until 
long  afterward  why  they  were  riding  off  into 
the  storm.  He  fell  so  far  behind  his  com 
panions  in  the  run  down  the  road  that  he 
could  ask  no  questions.  Right  bravely  the 
trio  plunged  into  the  dark  territory  over 
which  the  enemy  ruled.  It  was  the  duke 
who  finally  brought  the  cavalcade  to  a  halt 
by  propounding  a  most  sensible  question. 

"  Are  you  sure  she  came  this  way,  Cecil  ?" 

"  Certainly.  This  is  Shaw's  way,  is  n't 
it  ? " 

"  Did  she  say  she  was  going  to  Shaw's  ?  " 

"  Don't  know.  Evelyn  told  me.  Hang 
it  all,  Barminster,  come  along.  We  '11  never 
catch  up  to  her." 

"  Is  she  riding  ?  " 

"No  — horses  all  in." 

"  Do  you  know,  we  may  have  passed  her. 
Deuce  take  it,  Bazelhurst,  if  she  's  running 
from  us,  you  don't  imagine  she  'd  be 


away 


imagi 


such  a  silly  fool  as  to  stand  in  the  road  and 


wait  for  us.     If  she  heard    us    she  'd    hide 
among 


the  trees. 


"  But  she  's  had  an  hour's  start  of  us." 
"  Where  ees  she  coming  to  ? "  asked  the 


9 


9 


I24 


COWARDICE  COURT 


count,  with  an  anxious  glance  upward  just 
in  time  to  catch  a  skirmishing  raindrop  with 
his  eye. 

"  That 's  just  it.  We  don't  know,"  said 
the  duke. 

"  But  I  must  find  her/'  cried  Lord  Cecil. 
"  Think  of  that  poor  girl  alone  in  this  terri 
ble  place,  storm  coming  up  and  all  that. 
Hi,  Penelope ! "  he  shouted  in  his  most 
vociferous  treble.  The  shrieking  wind  re 
plied.  Then  the  three  of  them  shouted  her 
name.  "  Gad,  she  may  be  lost  or  dead  or 
—  Come  on,  Barminster.  We  must  scour 
the  whole  demmed  valley." 

They  were  off  again,  moving  more  cau 
tiously  while  the  duke  threw  the  light  from 
his  lamp  into  the  leafy  shadows  beside  the 
roadway.  The  wind  was  blowing  savagely 
down  the  slope  and  the  raindrops  were  be 
ginning  to  beat  in  their  faces  with  ominous 
persistency.  Some  delay  was  caused  by  an 
accident  to  the  rear-guard.  A  mighty  gust 
of  wind  blew  the  count's  hat  far  back  over 
the  travelled  road.  He  was  so  much  nearer 
Bazelhurst  Villa  when  they  found  it  that  he 
would  have  kept  on  in  that  direction  for  the 
sake  of  his  warm  bed  had  not  his  compan 
ions  talked  so  scornfully  about  cowardice. 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     125 

"  He  's  like  a  wildcat  to-night,"  said  the 
duke  in  an  aside  to  the  little  Frenchman, 
referring  to  his  lordship.  "  Demme,  I  'd 
rather  not  cross  him.  You  seem  to  forget 
that  his  sister  is  out  in  all  this  fury/' 

"Mon  Dieu,  but  I  do  not  forget.  I 
would  gif  half  my  life  to  hold  her  in  my 
arms  thees  eenstan'." 

"  Dem  you,  sir,  I  'd  give  her  the  other 
half  if  you  dared  try  such  a  thing.  We 
did  n't  fetch  you  along  to  hold  her.  You  've 
got  to  hold  the  horses,  that 's  all." 

"  Diable !  How  dare  you  to  speak 
to—" 

"  What  are  you  two  rowing  about  ?  "  de 
manded  his  lordship.  "Come  along  !  We  Ve 
losing  time.  Sit  on  your  hat,  Deveaux." 

Away  they  swept,  Penelope's  two  admirers 
wrathful ly  barking  at  one  another  about 
satisfaction  at  some  future  hour. 

The  storm  burst  upon  them  in  all  its  fury 
—  the  maddest,  wildest  storm  they  had 
known  in  all  their  lives.  Terrified,  half 
drowned,  blown  almost  from  the  saddles, 
the  trio  finally  found  shelter  in  the  lee  of  a 
shelving  cliff  just  off  the  road.  While  they 
stood  there  shivering,  clutching  the  bits  of 
their  well-nigh  frantic  horses,  the  glimmer 


d 


126 


COWARDICE  COURT 


of  lights  came  down  to  them  from  windows 
farther  up  the  steep.  There  was  no  mistak 
ing  the  three  upright  oblongs  of  light;  they 
were  tall  windows  in  a  house,  the  occupants 
of  which  doubtless  had  been  aroused  at  this 
unearthly  hour  by  the  fierceness  of  the 
storm. 

"  By  Jove,"  lamented  the  duke,  water 
running  down  his  neck  in  floods.  "  What 
a  luxury  a  home  is,  be  it  ever  so  humble, 
on  a  night  like  this/' 

"  Mon  Dieu  !    Mon  Dieu  ! "  groaned  the    I 
count.     "  How  comfortab'  zey  look.     And  »* 
here  ?     Eh  bien  !   Qui  fait  trembler  la  terre  ! 
I  am  seeck  !     I  die  !  " 

"  Penelope  is  out  in  all  this,"  moaned  his 
lordship. 

"I  am  not  so  sure  of  that.  Trust  a 
woman  to  find  a  place  where  she  can't  ruin 
her  hat.  My  word  for  it,  Cecil,  she  's  found 
a  safe  roost.  I  say,  by  Jove  !  "  The  duke 
was  staring  more  intently  than  ever  at  the 
windows  far  above.  "  I  have  it !  Is  n't  it 
rather  odd  that  a  house  should  be  lighted 
so  brilliantly  at  this  hour  of  night  ?  " 

"  Demmed  servants  forgot  to  put  out  the 
lamps,"  groaned  Bazelhurst  without  interest. 

"  Nonsense  !     I  tell  you  what :  some  one 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     127 

has  roused  the  house  and  asked  shelter  from 
the  storm.  Now,  who  could  that  be  but 
Penelope? " 

"  By  Jove,  you  're  a  ripping  clever  ass, 
after  all,  Barminster  —  a  regular  Sherlock 
Holmes.  That's  just  it!  She's  up  there 
where  the  windows  are.  Come  on  !  It 's 
easy  sailing  now,"  cried  his  lordship,  but  the 
duke  restrained  him. 

"  Don't  rush  off  like  a  fool.  Whose 
house  is  it  ?  " 

"  How  the  devil  do  I  know  ?  This  is 
Shaw's  land,  and  he  has  n't  been  especially 
cordial  about  —  " 

"  Aha  !  See  what  I  mean  ?  Shaw's  land, 
to  be  sure.  Well,  hang  your  stupidity, 
don't  you  know  we  're  looking  at  Shaw's 
house  this  very  instant?  He  lives  there 
and  she 's  arrived,  dem  it  all.  She  's  up 
there  with  him  —  dry  clothes,  hot  drinks 
and  all  that,  and  we  're  out  here  catching 
pneumonia.  Fine,  isn't  it?" 

"  Gad  !  You  're  right !  She  's  with  that 
confounded  villain.  My  God,  what 's  to 
become  of  her  ? "  groaned  Lord  Cecil,  sit 
ting  down  suddenly  and  covering  his  face 
with  his  hands. 

"We  must  rescue  her!"  shouted  the  duke. 


128 


COWARDICE  COURT 


"  Brace  up,  Cecil !  Don't  be  a  baby.  We  '11 
storm  the  place/* 

"  Not  in  zis  rain  !  "  cried  the  count. 

cc  You  stay  here  in  the  shade  and  hold  the 
horses,  that 's  what  you  do,"  said  the  duke 
scornfully. 

A  council  of  war  was  held.  From  their 
partiall-y  sheltered  position  the  invaders  could 
see,  by  the  flashes  of  lightning,  that  a  path 
and  some  steps  ascended  the  hill.  The  duke 
was  for  storming  the  house  at  once,  but  Lord 
Cecil  argued  that  it  would  be  foolish  to  start 
before  the  storm  abated.  Moreover,  he  ex 
plained,  it  would  be  the  height  of  folly  to 
attack  the  house  until  they  were  sure  that 
Penelope  was  on  the  inside. 

After  many  minutes  there  came  a  break 
in  the  violence  of  the  storm  and  prepara 
tions  were  at  once  made  for  the  climb  up 
the  hill.  Deveaux  was  to  remain  behind  in 
charge  of  the  horses.  With  their  bridle 
reins  in  his  hands  he  cheerfully  maintained 
this  position  of  trust,  securely  sheltered  from 
the  full  force  of  the  elements.  Right  bravely 
did  the  duke  and  his  lordship  venture  forth 
into  the  spattering  rain.  They  had  gone  no 
more  than  three  rods  up  the  path  when  *hey 
were  brought  to  a  halt  by  the  sounds  of  a 


Hi 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     129 

prodigious  struggle  behind  them.  There 
was  a  great  trampling  of  horses'  hoofs,  ac 
companied  by  the  frantic  shouts  of  the 
count. 

"  I  cannot  hold  zem  !  Mon  Dieu  !  Zey 
are  mad!  Ho!  Ho!  Help!" 

He  was  in  truth  having  a  monstrous  un 
pleasant  time.  His  two  friends  stumbled  to 
his  assistance,  but  not  in  time  to  prevent  the 
catastrophe.  The  three  horses  had  taken  it 
into  their  heads  to  bolt  for  home  ;  they  were 
plunging  and  pulling  in  three  directions  at 
the  same  time,  the  count  manfully  clinging 
to  the  bridle  reins,  in  great  danger  of  being 
suddenly  and  shockingly  dismembered. 

"  Hold  to  'em  ! "  shouted  Lord  Cecil. 

"  Help  !  "  shouted  the  count,  at  the  same 
moment  releasing  his  grip  on  the  reins. 
Away  tore  the  horses,  kicking  great  chunks 
of  mud  over  him  as  he  tumbled  aimlessly 
into  the  underbrush.  Down  the  road  clat 
tered  the  animals,  leaving  the  trio  marooned 
in  the  wilderness.  Groaning  and  half  dead, 
the  unfortunate  count  was  dragged  from  the 
brush  by  his  furious  companions.  What 
the  duke  said  to  him  was  sufficient  without 
being  repeated,  here  or  elsewhere.  The 
count  challenged  him  as  they  all  resumed 


130 


COWARDICE  COURT 


the  march  up  the  hill  to  visit  the  house  with 
the  lighted  windows. 

"  Here  is  my  card,  m'sieur,"  he  grated 
furiously. 

"  Demme,  I  know  you ! "  roared  the 
duke.  "  Keep  your  card  and  we  '11  send  it 
in  to  announce  our  arrival  to  Shaw." 

In  due  course  of  time,  after  many  slips 
and  falls,  they  reached  the  front  yard  of  the 
house  on  the  hillside.  It  was  still  raining 
lightly ;  the  thunder  and  lightning  were 
crashing  away  noisily  farther  up  the  valley. 
Cautiously  they  approached  through  the 
weeds  and  brush. 

"  By  Jove  !  "  exclaimed  his  lordship,  com 
ing  to  a  standstill.  He  turned  the  light  of 
his  lantern  toward  the  front  elevation  of  the 
house.  "  Every  door  and  window,  except 
these  three,  are  boarded  up.  It  can't  be 
Shaw's  home." 

"  That 's  right,  old  chap.  Deuced  queer, 
eh  ?  I  say,  Deveaux,  step  up  and  pound  on 
the  door.  You  Ve  got  a  card,  you  know." 

"  Que  diable  !  "  exclaimed  the  count,  sink 
ing  into  the  background. 

"  We  might  reconnoitre  a  bit,"  said  Bazel- 
hurst.  "  Have  a  look  at  the  rear,  you 
know." 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     131 

Around  the  corner  of  the  house  they 
trailed,  finally  bringing  up  at  the  back  steps. 
The  windows  were  not  only  dark  but 
boarded  up.  While  they  stood  there  amazed 
and  uncertain,  the  rain  came  down  again  in 
torrents,  worse  than  before  if  possible.  They 
scampered  for  cover,  plunging  three  abreast 
beneath  the  same  steps  that  had  sheltered 
Penelope  and  Shaw  such  a  short  time  before. 

"  Ouch  !  Get  off  my  foot !  "  roared  the 
duke. 

"  Zounds  !  Who  are  you  punching, 
demme  !  Hullo  !  What 's  this  ?  A  door 
and  open,  as  I  live."  The  trio  entered  the 
cellar  door  without  ceremony.  "  Thank 
God,  we  're  out  of  the  rain,  at  least." 

It  was  not  until  they  had  explored  the 
basement  and  found  it  utterly  without  signs 
of  human  occupancy  that  the  truth  of  the 
situation  began  to  dawn  upon  them.  Bar- 
minster's  face  was  white  and  his  voice  shook 
as  he  ventured  the  horrid  speculation : 

"  The  good  Lord  save  us  —  it 's  that 
demmed  haunted  house  Pen  was  talking 
about !  " 

"  But  ze  lights  ?  "  queried  the  count. 

"  Ghosts !  " 

"  Let 's  get  out  of  this  place,"  said  Lord 


o 


COWARDICE  COURT 

Bazelhurst,  moving  toward  the  door.  "It 's 
that  beastly  Kenwood  house.  They  say  he 
comes  back  arid  murders  her  every  night 
or  so." 

"  Mon  Dieu  !  " 

"  Penelope  is  n't  here.  Let 's  move  on," 
agreed  the  duke  readily.  But  even  fear  of 
the  supernatural  was  not  strong  enough  to 
drive  them  out  into  the  blinding  storm. 
"  I  say !  Look  ahead  there.  By  Harry, 
there's  Shaw's  place." 

Peering  through  the  door  they  saw  for 
the  first  time  the  many  lights  in  Shaw's 
windows,  scarce  a  quarter  of  a  mile  away. 
For  a  long  time  they  stood  and  gazed  at 
the  distant  windows.  Dejectedly  they  sat 
down,  backs  to  the  wall,  and  waited  for  the 
storm  to  spend  its  fury.  Wet,  cold,  and 
tired,  they  finally  dozed.  It  was  Lord 
Cecil  who  first  saw  the  signs  of  dawn.  The 
rain  storm  had  come  to  a  mysterious  end, 
but  a  heavy  fog  in  its  stead  loomed  up. 
He  aroused  his  companions  and  with  many 
groans  of  anguish  they  prepared  to  venture 
forth  into  the  white  wall  beyond. 

Just  as  they  were  taking  a  last  look  about 
the  wretched  cellar  something  happened  that 
would  have  brought  terror  to  the  stoutest 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     133 

heart.  A  wild,  appalling  shriek  came  from 
somewhere  above,  the  cry  of  a  mortal  soul 
in  agony. 

The  next  instant  three  human  forms  shot 
through  the  narrow  door  and  out  into  the 
fog,  hair  on  end,  eyes  bulging  but  sightless, 
legs  travelling  like  the  wind  and  as  purpose 
less.  It  mattered  not  that  the  way  was 
hidden  ;  it  mattered  less  that  weeds,  brush, 
and  stumps  lurked  in  ambush  for  unwary 
feet.  They  fled  into  the  foggy  dangers 
without  a  thought  of  what  lay  before  them 
—  only  of  what  stalked  behind  them. 

Upstairs  Randolph  Shaw  lay  back  against 
the  wall  and  shook  with  laughter.  Penel 
ope's  convulsed  face  was  glued  to  the 
kitchen  window,  her  eyes  peering  into  the  fog 
beyond.  Shadowy  figures  leaped  into  the 
white  mantle ;  the  crash  of  brush  came  back 
to  her  ears,  and  then,  like  the  barking  of  a 
dog,  there  arose  from  the  mystic  gray  the 
fast  diminishing  cry : 

"  Help  !  Help  !  Help  !  "  Growing  fainter 
and  sharper  the  cry  at  last  was  lost  in  the 
phantom  desert. 

They  stood  at  the  window  and  watched 
the  fog  lift,  gray  and  forbidding,  until  the 
trees  and  road  were  discernible.  Then,  arm 


134 


COWARDICE  COURT 


in  arm,  they  set  forth  across  the  wet  way 
toward  Shaw's  cottage.  The  mists  cleared 
as  they  walked  along,  the  sun  peeped  through 
the  hills  as  if  afraid  to  look  upon  the  devas 
tation  of  the  night ;  all  the  world  seemed  at 
peace  once  more. 

"  Poor  Cecil  !  "  she  sighed.  "  It  was  cruel 
of  you."  In  the  roadway  they  found  a  hat 
which  she  at  once  identified  as  the  count's. 
Farther  on  there  was  a  carriage  lamp,  and 
later  a  mackintosh  which  had  been  cast  aside 
as  an  impediment.  "  Oh,  it  was  cruel  !  " 
She  smiled,  however,  in  retrospection. 

An  hour  later  they  stood  together  on  the 
broad  porch,  looking  out  over  the  green, 
glistening  hills.  The  warm  fresh  air  rilled 
their  lungs  and  happiness  was  overcrowding 
their  hearts.  In  every  direction  were  signs 
of  the  storm's  fury.  Great  trees  lay  blasted, 
limbs  and  branches  were  scattered  over  the 
ground,  wide  fissures  split  the  roadway 
across  which  the  deluge  had  rushed  on  its 
way  down  the  slope. 

But  Penelope  was  warm  and  dry  and  safe 
after  her  thrilling  night.  A  hot  breakfast  was 
being  prepared  for  them  ;  trouble  seemed  to 
have  gone  its  way  with  the  elements. 

"  If  I  were  only  sure  that  nothing  serious 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     135 

had  happened  to  Cecil,"  she  murmured 
anxiously. 

"  I  'm  sorry,  dear,  for  that  screech  of 
mine,"  he  apologized. 

Suddenly  he  started  and  gazed  intently  in 
the  direction  of  the  haunted  house.  A  man 
—  a  sorry  figure  —  was  slowly,  painfully 
approaching  from  the  edge  of  the  wood 
scarce  a  hundred  yards  away.  In  his  hand 
he  carried  a  stick  to  which  was  attached  a 
white  cloth  —  doubtless  a  handkerchief. 
He  was  hatless  and  limped  perceptibly. 
The  two  on  the  porch  watched  his  approach 
in  amazed  silence. 

"  It 's  Cecil !  "  whispered  Penelope  in 
horror-struck  tones.  "  Good  heaven,  Ran 
dolph,  go  to  him  !  He  is  hurt." 

It  was  Lord  Bazelhurst.  As  Shaw  hurried 
down  the  drive  to  meet  him,  no  thought  of 
the  feud  in  mind,  two  beings  even  more 
hopelessly  dilapidated  ventured  from  the 
wood  and  hobbled  up  behind  the  truce- 
bearer,  who  had  now  paused  to  lift  his 
shoulders  into  a  position  of  dignity  and 
defiance.  Shaw's  heart  was  touched.  The 
spectacle  was  enough  to  melt  the  prejudice 
of  any  adversary.  Lord  Cecil's  knees  trem 
bled  ;  his  hand  shook  as  if  in  a  chill.  Mud- 


I** 

M 


€ 


136 


COWARDICE  COURT 


covered,  water-soaked,  and  bruised,  their 
clothes  rent  in  many  places,  their  hats  gone 
and  their  hair  matted,  their  legs  wobbly,  the 
trio  certainly  inspired  pity,  not  mirth  nor 
scorn. 

"  One  moment,  sir,"  called  his  lordship, 
with  a  feeble  attempt  at  severity.  His  voice 
was  hoarse  and  shaky.  "  We  do  not  come 
as  friends,  dem  you.  Is  my  sister  here  ?  " 

"She  is,  Lord  Bazelhurst.  We'll  talk 
this  over  later  on,"  said  Shaw  in  his  friend 
liest  way.  "  You  are  worn  out  and  done 
up,  I  'm  sure  —  you  and  your  friends. 
Come  !  I  'm  not  as  bad  as  you  think.  I  've 
changed  my  mind  since  I  saw  you  last. 
Let 's  see  if  we  can't  come  to  an  amicable 
understanding.  Miss  Drake  is  waiting  up 
there.  Breakfast  soon  will  be  ready  —  hot 
coffee  and  all  that.  Permit  me,  gentlemen, 
to  invite  you  to  partake  of  what  we  have. 
What  say  you  ?  " 

"  Confound  you,  sir,  I  —  I  —  "  but  his 
brave  effort  failed  him.  He  staggered  and 
would  have  fallen  had  not  the  duke  caught 
him  from  behind. 

"  Thanks,  old  chap,"  said  Barminster  to 
Shaw.  "  We  will  come  in  for  a  moment. 
I  say,  perhaps  you  could  give  us  a  dry  dud 


Hi 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     137 

or  two.  Bazelhurst  is  in  a  bad  way  and  so 
is  the  count.  It  was  a  devil  of  a  storm." 

"  Mon  Dieu!  cetait  fyouv  ant  able!  "  groaned 
the  count. 

Penelope  came  down  from  the  porch  to 
meet  them.  Without  a  word  she  took  her 
brother's  arm.  He  stared  at  her  with  grow 
ing  resentment. 

"  Dem  it  all,  Pen,"  he  chattered,  "  you  're 
not  at  all  wet,  are  you  ?  Look  at  me  !  All 
on  your  account,  too." 

"  Dear  old  Cecil  !  All  on  Evelyn's  ac 
count,  you  mean,"  she  said  softly,  wistfully. 

"  I  shall  have  an  understanding  with  her 
when  we  get  home,"  he  said  earnestly. 
"  She  shan't  treat  my  sister  like  this  again." 

"  No,"  said  Shaw  from  the  other  side  ; 
cc  she  shan't." 

"  By  Jove,  Shaw,  are  you  with  me  ?  "  de 
manded  his  lordship  in  surprise. 

"  Depends  on  whether  you  are  with  me," 
said  the  other.  Penelope  flushed  warmly. 

Later  on,  three  chastened  but  ludicrous 
objects  shuffled  into  the  breakfast-room, 
where  Shaw  and  Penelope  awaited  them. 
In  passing,  it  is  only  necessary  to  say  that 
Randolph  Shaw's  clothes  did  not  fit  the 
gentlemen  to  whom  they  were  loaned. 


138 


COWARDICE  COURT 


o1 


Bazelhurst  was  utterly  lost  in  the  folds  of 
a  gray  tweed,  while  the  count  was  obliged 
to  roll  up  the  sleeves  and  legs  of  a  frock 
suit  which  fitted  Shaw  rather  too  snugly. 
The  duke,  larger  than  the  others,  was  pas 
sably  fair  in  an  old  swallow-tail  coat  and 
brown  trousers.  They  were  clean,  but  there 
was  a  strong  odour  of  arnica  about  them. 
Each  wore,  besides,  an  uncertain,  sheepish 
smile. 

Hot  coffee,  chops,  griddle  cakes,  and  maple 
syrup  soon  put  the  contending  forces  at  their 
ease.  Bazelhurst  so  far  forgot  himself  as  to 
laugh  amiably  at  his  host's  jokes.  The 
count  responded  in  his  most  piquant  dia 
lect,  and  the  duke  swore  by  an  ever-useful 
Lord  Harry  that  he  had  never  tasted  such  a 
breakfast. 

"  By  Jove,  Pen,"  exclaimed  her  brother,  in 
rare  good  humour,  "  it 's  almost  a  sin  to  take 
you  away  from  such  good  cooking  as  this." 

"  You  're  not  going  to  take  her  away,  how 
ever,"  said  Shaw.  "  She  has  come  to  stay." 

There  was  a  stony  silence.  Coffee-cups 
hung  suspended  in  the  journey  to  mouths, 
and  three  pairs  of  eyes  stared  blankly  at  the 
smiling  speaker. 

"  What  —  what  the   devil   do  you  mean, 


THE  AUTHOR  TRESPASSES     139 

sir  ?  "  demanded  Lord  Cecil,  his  coffee-cup 
shaking  so  violently  that  the  contents  over 
flowed. 

"  She  's  going  over  to  Plattsburg  with  me 
to-day,  and  when  she  comes  back  she  will  be 
Mrs.  Randolph  Shaw.  That 's  what  I  mean, 
your  lordship." 

Three  of  his  listeners  choked  with  amaze 
ment  and  then  coughed  painfully.  Feebly 
they  set  their  cups  down  and  gulped  as  if 
they  had  something  to  swallow.  The  duke 
was  the  first  to  find  his  tongue,  and  he  was 
quite  at  a  loss  for  words. 

«  B— by  Jove,"  he  said  blankly,  "that 's 
demmed  hot  coffee  !  " 

"  Is  this  true,  Penelope  ? "  gasped  his 
lordship. 

"  Yes,  Cecil.  I  Ve  promised  to  marry 
him." 

"  Good  God  !  It  is  n't  because  you  feel 
that  you  have  no  home  with  me  ?  " 

"I  love  him.  It's  a  much  older  story 
than  you  think,"  she  said  simply. 

"  I  say,  that  hits  me  hard,"  said  the  duke, 
with  a  wry  face.  "  Still,  I  join  in  saying 
God  bless  you." 

"  We  're  trying  to  end  the  feud,  you  see," 
said  Penelope. 


*1 

19 


140 


COWARDICE  COURT 


Tears  came  into  his  lordship's  pale  eyes. 
He  looked  first  at  one  and  then  at  the  other, 
and  then  silently  extended  his  hand  to  Ran 
dolph  Shaw.  He  wrung  it  vigorously  for 
a  long  time  before  speaking.  Then,  as  if 
throwing  a  weight  off  his  mind,  he  remarked  : 

"  I  say,  Shaw,  I  'm  sorry  about  that  dog. 
I  Ve  got  an  English  bull-terrier  down  there 
that 's  taken  a  ribbon  or  so.  If  you  don't 
mind,  I  '11  send  him  up  to  you.  He  —  he 
knows  Penelope." 


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